Destiny: The Warlock of Legend
by The Virtual Warlock
Summary: All I know is this: The Darkness is coming back, Oryx and The Vex Lord lead its armies, and we have less than a year to prepare for potential Armageddon. Only one thing stands in its way, me. My name is The Warlock, and this is the story of how I nearly caused the apocalypse of 2761.
1. Resurrection

RESURRECTION

* * *

"Guardian?" a voice asked, softly at first, then its voice increased in volume. "Guardian. Eyes up, Guardian!" I woke up, my back erect against a rusted car. I saw a steel orb with eight rounded tetrahedral prisms in a symmetrical pattern. "It worked," the voice said to itself, "You're alive!"

"I just woke up from a nap. What makes you think I was dead?" I asked the orb.

"You were a skeleton two minutes ago," it said. "And I am a ghost, your Ghost."

I stood up, and looked around. "Wait a minute," I said. I walked over to one of the cars and saw a skeleton whose head was caved in. Then I asked the Ghost, "How long?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"I was dead for how long?"

"I don't know. Two or Three Hundred years?" Then we heard a screech, a high-pitched screech that sounded like a mixture between a wolf's howl and a Xenomorph's scream. "Fallen!" It whispered. "I need to get you to the city." Then it disappeared. "I still with you, but we need to move."

"Alright, Alright. I'm moving." And I did, quickly. I ran along a path towards a giant wall that I never saw before. Rusted, like the cars. My Ghost said, "The Divide. Kept Old Russian secrets in, and the Fallen out."

I lingered on the word _kept_ but couldn't help noticing the masses of old cars. "How many people were left to die?" I asked the Ghost.

"About 7 to 8 billion in the year 2415. That's when It came."

I climbed a flight of stairs. "It?"

"The Darkness. The Traveler's enemy, creator of Vex, animator of the Hive. It came and crippled The Traveler and almost destroyed Humanity. The Great Purge was its effect, and our downfall. Until the Guardians came."

"And I'm a Guardian now, which is?"

Then we heard garbled voices in the room above us, no doubt the Fallen. "You'll find out soon enough," it said.

I climbed another flight of stairs into a pitch black room. The Ghost lit itself up and said, "We need more light if we want to get past the Fallen. I'll see what I can do," and floated away to the apparent opposite corner of the room.

Then, the lights flickered, and lit up the whole length of the room. Two kilometers from where I was standing, hundreds of thousands of Fallen were crawling on the walls, the bridges, the floor, and the ceiling. "Okay. We need to move!" shouted the Ghost. I began looking around for a weapon, any weapon. Then I found an old Russian assault rifle, labeled the Khovstov. "You know how to use that thing?" asked Ghost.

"No clue." But I gave it a shot. Two Fallen jumped out, and I shot both. _I just killed a life, let alone two._ I moved down the hallway, and another Fallen dropped from ceiling, and landed in my face. Upon instinct, I thrust my palm into its face, and the 2-armed Dreg fell. "You're a warlock," The Ghost remarked.

"Yes?" The Ghost began thinking in his head, for I could sense his thoughts. I asked him, "What prophesy?"

"We'll talk when we get back to City," it demanded. As he said his last word, Three more Fallen dropped from the ceiling, all of them were decapitated. I kept moving forward, then turned left just in time to avoid a shot from a Vandal on a bridge in front of me. I jumped onto the bridge, and shot the sniper. Then I crossed the bridge "How about now?" I asked the Ghost.

"No. We need to get to the city." I opened a loot cache and found a shotgun and sniper rifle inside, took both and some shiny blue cubes with me, and proceeded to the next room.

Four Vandals dropped, four Dregs burst through the floor, and four Shanks crawled out of the walls. "They didn't bring the whole armada? I'm disappointed." I pulled out my sniper, shot the two snipers and the shanks, whipped out the Khovstov and killed the remaining Vandals, then charged in and melee killed the Dregs.

"Why are you disappointed?" asked the Ghost.

"Do you understand jokes?" I asked it.

"This is 2761. Nobody has time for jokes."

I stopped. "2761!?" I shouted, "DO YOU MEAN TO SAY THAT I'VE BEEN DEAD FOR NEARLY SEVEN HUNDRED AND THIRTY YEARS?!"

The Ghost looked like its usual self, but I detected shock in its eye. "I'll tell you everything as soon as we get to the City."

After a long corridor, I finally reach the other side of the wall, and breathe fresh air again. As I walked into the field, I asked, "What was this place?"

"An old Cosmodrome, fitted to send humans beyond Earth, and its Sun, using jumpships," my Ghost said.

"Let me guess, I'm about to find out what those are too."

"Yep."

"Great," I said sarcastically. "Are you going to answer any of my questions?"

"Well,-"

Just then, we saw a flare in the sky, which turned into a warp point for a ship. "Fallen Skiffs? This close to the surface!?"

"I know, MOVE!" But it was too late; the skiff dropped its Fallen passengers and left. I could also see another ship above me, significantly larger than the skiff. _No time for sight seeing, you just got shot!_ I turn around. The Dregs are hissing, Vandals' ether leaking, and Shanks whizzing. I pulled out the shotgun, blew the Shanks away, shot half of the Fallen, then switched to the auto rifle to kill the remaining Dregs. Ahead of me, about half a kilometer away, stood two more snipers. _Fire with fire._ I pulled out my own sniper, placed one shot in a Vandal's mouth, and placed another in between his buddy's eyes.

I took some time to look at the scenery. Snow on the ground, nighttime, and a lot of buildings that look like OKB-1 architecture: rectangular, lots of space between buildings, some higher or bigger than others. There was grass, but only in small patches that poked through the snow. Come to think of it, the landscape wasn't covered in snow either. The ground was dry and cracked, though you couldn't see the cracks either.

When I looked down, I realized that my shoes were worn, and my gauntlets were starting to tear. _When I get to the City, they better have some durable threads._

I went into the next building, named Dock 13, and after a winding hallway, I came across a pack of Fallen, and one of them looked like he had 4 horns on his mask.

"Tres, a mus kii," said one, presumably their Captain.

"Ba ma kre la!" shouted a Vandal.

 _Have they found me?_ I jumped out, shot down 4 Vandals, threw a Vortex grenade at their Captain. The Captain dodged it, but 3 Dregs weren't so lucky. I shot 3 bullets into each of its arms, then delivered 4 more to its mask, sending him to the ground.

"Rahn akri no frili!" it said.

"If that means you can't die, then I've already busted that claim."

"Is there Darkness?" it asked with its dying breath.

"Only in you," said the Ghost. Then the orb floated over to the ship, hanging by some cables, and looming over the Captain's dead body. "Its old, possibly ancient. We'll be lucky if I can fly this thing."

"Or get to the City in one piece," I said.

"Right." Then the ghost disappeared, and the ship was activated. At that moment, 13 more Fallen began to crawl out of a hole in the wall to my right. One was carrying a weird-looking, 4 barreled shotgun.

"RRAAAAAAA!" it shouted. I raised my Khovstov, but my Ghost said, "No, you're not ready," and I was teleported inside the jumpship. "I need to bring you to the City, remember? But we'll come back for them."

"I can take them." But the ship was in the air, and pointed west.

"No, you can't. We'll get you some new armor, and weapons. Then, we'll decide if you can go back."

As we took off, I could feel the presence of an unknown figure, standing on the roof of the Dock. _Friend or foe? I'll find out._

* * *

The figure stared at the ship. She thought to herself, _Is this Ghoul the Guardian of Legend? The One from the prophesy?_ Then she vanished, in thin air.


	2. Pathfinding

PATHFINDING

* * *

A Fallen looks into the Hellmouth. _What is down there? What could the Hive be housing within the core of this rock?_ Then he remembered how his arms were docked: Curiosity. He asked too many questions while he was a Wolf, his captain said, "Taas kii la too roc oretsa, I burc fir dia lar racshad, taska!" (translated: "If you ask too many questions, I'll cut your arms off, for good!") Needless to say, he escaped, from Virixas, from his captain, and from The Queen. _The captains here are nicer, for they have escaped the dictatorship of the Kells and the Archons' persecution. Vandals, however, still cling to their old ways. This new House is an Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune, whatever that means, and I like it._ Then he looked up at the sky, hoping to find an author at his desk, but all he found was the Earth.

Then he heard something. A moan. He turned towards it, and saw a Guardian. It crawled out of the pit, face down. The Dreg cautiously approached the Guardian. He raised his shock pistol. "Kasu ra ta?" The Guardian looked up, and the Dreg fell to the ground, backing away from the three hideous, glowing, green eyes. He stopped when his back was against a rock and raised his weapon again, this time it was level with its legs. The Guardian stood up and said, "I am Eris Morn," then raising its own firearm at the Dreg. Finger on the trigger, it said, "and I need a ship."

* * *

I was strapped into my seat, and my Ghost was the wheel, or handlebars, or something. "Do you have a name?" I asked.

"GH-0358200822367," it responded

"That's a mouthful. How about Rusty?"

"WHAT?"

"Well, I don't want to say 'Ghost' or your full name when I want to talk to you, so I'm giving you a nickname."

"What the Hellmouth is a nickname?"

"A shortened name. Something to remember people by."

"Well, I don't like Rusty. It sounds...old."

"It's temporary until I think of a new one, Rusty."

Rusty grumbled and went back to steering. Then he said, "We're here." I looked out the window. A massive rectangular Tower stood before the ship, and below it was a city, the City. I saw brilliant lights in the streets below, white and glowing in the night. The streets were straight, numbered, and formed actual blocks. Some buildings were taller than others, some were close to the height of the Tower, but none could surpass it.

Then Rusty teleported me out of the ship and said, "Welcome to the Last City, the only place The Traveler can still protect. And this Tower is where the Guardians live and buy stuff." I said, "Well, where to?"

"Ikora Rey welcomes new Warlocks as their Vanguard, so let's start there."

I walked across the plaza from the mini overlook to the flights of stairs leading to a hall filled with red banners and white swords, which lead to a giant room with a long table and 3 Guardians standing before it. The 'bluish-pale' soldier stood at the end furthest from me, the robotic humanoid with a hoodie stood behind the middle of the table and to my left, and then a robed human stood at the right-hand corner closest to me. I walked over to the robed Guardian and asked her, "Are you Ikora Rey?" She looked at me and said, "Yes. What can I do for you, Warlock?"

"Just a new robe, and maybe some new combat boots."

"Sure, here you go."

As I was about to leave, the soldier looked at me and said, "You know, you could easily be a Titan."

The robot followed suit. "Or a Hunter."

"Yeah, but I'm a Warlock."

"What's so fun about books?"

Ikora straightened her back and said, "Applying them to the field and scouting missions."

The soldier looked at Ikora. "We all know there are laws to your faction's mysterious ways, Ikora. But in terms of dealing damaging blows to the enemy, Titans are supreme."

"Zavala," the Warlock Vanguard spoke, "strength does not solve every problem. Warlocks have the mental capacity for dealing with Hive runes and Vex gates."

The robot looked at Zavala, then at Ikora, and he kept going back and forth, until he said, "Here we go again."

"Cayde-6, we've had enough of your commentary," said Zavala sternly.

"Just trying to lighten the mood."

I left as soon as I could. But as I walked up the stairs, I bumped into an Exo Titan and an Awoken Hunter, both of whom shouted, "Watch where you're going!"

"Sorry," I responded apologetically, and ran away as fast as I could, and to the gunsmith. "What gun are you looking for?" its scratchy voice asked.

"A new weapon," I said as I tossed down the Khovstov.

"Battered, beaten, ancient, yours," it said. "I can give you a new weapon. You need to choose between something like your rifle, something that fires in bursts, something with extended range, or something small, but powerful."

"You mean like the Noisy Cricket?"

"What's that?"

"Nevermind. Scout Rifle."

The Gunsmith handed me something long, rectangular, and with a scope. "Here, and don't take too long next time."

"Thanks," and I ran away from the vendor, and into the Titan and the Hunter again. "Sorry, I'm trying to get used to this new Guardian body."

At first, they looked at me with disgust, then intrigue. They looked at each other, then at me. "Yeah, well, get used to it sooner. We're supposed to be fighting the Darkness," said the Titan. The Hunter looked at me, turned to whisper into her partner's ear. The Titan turned and whispered, "Prophesy?" into the Hunter's ear, and she nodded. He spoke, "Are you the Guardian of Legend?"

"Who is that?"

Then The Hunter spoke. "'He will rise from the dead, master the three elements, channel The Traveler's Pure Light, and destroy The Darkness for good.' That's all I know."

The Titan approached me. "She's always had a fascination with books and prophesies, she mistakenly believes that there is something out there controlling the Darkness."

"What's wrong with a Hunter who reads and presents theories that are true 9 out of 10 times?"

He didn't speak. Then the Hunter said, "We're trying to find a Warp Drive for our ships. They can't be found in most modern ships these days."

Rusty spoke up. "I know where to find one."

"Where?" we asked.

"The Cosmodrome."

"But its overrun by Fallen, let alone the House of Devils," said the Titan.

The Hunter said, "So? Smash and grab: kill the Devils, get the Warp Drive, and send it off to the shipwright to manufacture some duplicates."

"All right," I said, "Let's go. Beam us up, Scotty!"

The Titan and the Hunter looked at me. "Who's Scotty?"

"Remind me to set up a Star Trek marathon for you guys."

* * *

Dredgen Yor woke up to find himself lying down in the Circle of Bones. He picked himself up, and then looked down at his Rose. What once had silvery petals now brandished raw iron spikes, shaped like thorns. His ghost, once full of life, now lays dead on the floor. Just then, a Hive Acolyte walked towards him, but it never shot him, and vise versa he couldn't shoot it. _Have I found a way to control the Darkness, or does the Darkness control me?_ Just then, two wizards were talking to each other. Although they spoke in their Hiveish tongue, Dredgen could understand what they said. The first wizard said, "Is the spell done, Ir Yut?" Ir Yut said to her friend, "Almost Omnigul. Soon, your husband will take control over the Guardian's soul, and He will destroy the Earth." Dredgen raised his weapon and aimed at Ir Yut's head. "I told you it wouldn't work," shouted Omnigul. Ir Yut put a finger up and said, "Wait for it." Dredgen couldn't bear it, Thorn felt heavy in his hands, and the thought of killing these two wizards didn't sit right. _Who are you? Just kill them!_ He lowered his weapon, and Ir Yut placed her hand on Dredgen's shoulder. "Who are you?" she asked.

Dredgen spoke in a deep voice that bellowed across space. "I AM CROTA!" he shouted, "AND I HAVE COME TO DESTROY THE TRAVELER AND ITS PRECIOUS EARTH!"


	3. Warp One

WARP ONE

* * *

"We were lucky to find this ship just lying around, but we need a warp drive in order to fight beyond Earth." Rusty briefed us on the mission. "And the Cosmodrome is the only place left standing that still might have one."

"Sounds like a 'smash and grab' to me," I said. I was driving the ship through the atmosphere, and to Old Russia. The Titan sat in the cargo hold with The Hunter, whispering about something. "What do mean he's the chosen one?" The Titan asked. His partner replied, "The ghoul to bring back the Light, that's him."

"But, do you feel like it's too easy? We found him before anybody else."

Then she said, "The six that enter, shall be led by one who will harness Pure Light and restore the Traveler."

The Titan was silent, then he spoke, "We need to be sure." The Hunter nodded, then said, "I'll watch him carefully."

I shouted, "We're here!" and teleported everyone to the surface.

"Alright," said the Titan, "Where's this warp drive?"

"A ship crashed here a few weeks ago, so let's head there first."

As we were walking to the crash site, I thought I saw another hunter, perched on a cliff, wearing a torn cloak decorated with bones, and holding a sniper in his hands. But when I turned my head, he was gone. Just a puff of green smoke stood where he was. "Warlock!" shouted The Titan. I turned my head toward him and said, "Yes?" "You need to look at this!" shouted The Hunter. I ran to where they were standing: right next to a crashed ship. Rusty then said, "I'll take a look." He began to scan the ship. "The Warp Drive is trashed, but I can bring up the last transmission." Ignoring my ghost, I asked both of my teammates, "Why don't you have Warp Drives."

The Titan plunged his fist into the ship.

The Hunter turned to The Titan and said, "Leviathan! It's not The Speaker's fault!"

Leviathan then turned to his partner. "Oh yeah, Lianna? He restricted space travel to only a small number of Guardians. I think it should be our turn to travel out there and fight The Darkness."

I turned to meet them. "What happened?"

Lianna looked at me through her helmet. "A fireteam went to the moon, and never came back."

Rusty interrupted with, "There's an information hub down below, that might help us find the Warp Drive."

We walked to a rusted building, down two flights of stairs to a giant map, guarded by Dregs. When I looked at what they were guarding, I told Rusty, "You could just say 'map' instead of 'information hub'."

"What's a map?"

I definitely felt out of place in this century. _Too analytical for my tastes._

"Nevermind, I've got this," I said, and I shot the first in the head, the second in the stomach, and the final one in the heart. "All clear," and the three of us rushed into the map room. Rusty floated toward the map, scanned it, and said, "Dock 13, that's where we found our ship, and that's also where we'll find a Warp Drive."

"So, what's wrong with it?" asked Leviathan.

"That's the same place where we met the Arc-." Rusty froze.

Lianna looked at my Ghost. "The Archon?" If Rusty could nod, he would have done so.

Leviathan looked scared. "Ar-Archon?" he said.

She nodded, and Leviathan looked terrified. Lianna gave him a look, and he soon straightened out. I could understand that they have been through alot in their training. Then I thought, _How could I have mastered the "Force" immediately after I was risen? No Warlock who was risen from death could possibly know about his powers until he's had experience. Or-._ I snapped out of my trance when Lianna said, "Time to go."

"Coming!" When I reached the surface, I saw 3 Dregs and 2 Vandals were patrolling the area in front of the shed that we were coming out of, and there were 7 more Fallen in front a building with a huge hole in the wall. Pulling out my scout rifle, I jump onto the metal crate, looked down the weapon sights, aimed at a Vandal's head, and shot it. The other 4 Fallen screamed, and their buddies ran to our position. 11 Fallen surround us, and they wait for me to move first. "We are screwed," muttered Leviathan.

Suddenly, Lianna raised her hand, muttered some incantations, formed a blazing pistol, and vaporized 3 Vandals. The Dregs screamed again, and ran for cover. "Nice job, Lianna!" I said.

"Thank you," she replied, "Something that I learned from training. Cayde called it 'The Golden Gun'."

"And only Hunters call upon it?"

"Yes. But I really want a blade that discharges electricity." She looked at Leviathan. "He has a 'Fist of Havoc' that damages enemies and the ground that they stand on within a 3 meter radius."

"Cool!"

"What about you?"

I didn't want to disappoint her. "Umm..." I began to say, but Leviathan interrupted with, "Hey! Let's get moving before reinforcements arrive." "Maybe later," I told Lianna.

Entering the building, I heard Leviathan whisper, "He doesn't know?"

Lianna whispered back, "I couldn't tell, but I felt the Void shift around him."

"Typical, that's their first stage. Some don't even make it to the second, harnessing the sun."

" _Channelling_ the Sun," she corrected, "Warlocks can channel the elements for long periods of time without the need of tools."

"Were you reading Osiris's books?"

"No."

"Toland's journal?"

"That thing is torn apart and scattered in the winds. No one's read it in decades."

"Then how do you know this?"

"I attended one or two Warlock rituals."

Leviathan looked shocked, and then he shouted, "YOU WHAT?!"

I turned around. "Leviathan, why do think that Lianna can't attend a ritual, or read a book?"

He stammered, "I-I-I, W-w-well..."

Lianna said, "Titans are supposed to be 'enforcers of the law'," then she turned to her partner, "but it doesn't give you the right to judge anyone else."

Then we heard the sound of Fallen growling, and we stacked ourselves up against a wall. "I hope you're ready for this," Rusty said in a cautious tone. Lianna pulled out her sniper, aimed down the scope, and shot 5 Dregs before the Vandals were onto us. A few stabs, punches, force pushes, and bullets later, the entire crew was dead. "It's in the walls!" shouted Rusty. The Archon crawled out, and began firing devastating rounds of shrapnel at us. When one of us would try to shoot at him, or run for some cover, the shrapnel would burn us well to oblivion. Lianna got some on her arms, I had a lot on my back, Leviathan was covered in it, but everyone's clothes were singed. The Archon shouted, "It's the Darkness!" As soon as we heard that, more Fallen crawled out of the pipes. "Tas ku, Tas ka," The Archon spoke to his subjects, and they instantly obeyed. I said to Lianna and Leviathan, "I have 12% of a plan, but right now it's better than nothing."

"12%?" asked Leviathan, "I've got a full plan already in my head."

"If your plan is to 'Kill the Archon', then you can guess where that landed us," shouted Lianna.

"And you two are buddies?" I said.

"He kills enemies, and I try to keep an open mind for his 'strategies'." She whipped out her sniper, shot 4 Vandals and 6 Dregs, then landed a bullet into The Archon's eye. He screamed, she pulled out her Pulse Rifle, and managed to poke some holes into his armor. A gaseous substance started leaking from his chest. Then I thought, _There's your plan!_ I asked Lianna, "Can you recall your Golden Gun?"

"I can't. It has a cooldown, but I'll use it when I can."

"That's good." But when shrapnel started piercing the walls which we used for cover, I realized we didn't have time. "No rush, but do you have anything else with fire?"

"My grenade, but..."

"It's on cooldown as well?"

"Yep."

More shrapnel. "Anything that can create sparks?"

"A throwing knife?"

"Yes," and I told her the plan as the Archon started coughing. "Aim for the chest. Don't lose focus."

"Alright, I know what I'm doing."

"Just throw the knife already," said Leviathan. Lianna threw it at the Archon's chest, it punctured his armor, but it didn't ignite the gas. "Why didn't it work? I saw the spark and everything," I said.

"Unless it isn't flammable," finished Lianna.

"Oh, this is ridiculous!" shouted Leviathan. He jumped out from his cover, and prepared to slam the ground with his full weight. In mid air, he shouted some words in a foreign language, became electrified for just a moment, did a Hulk Smash on the Archon. "That ought to start a fire," I said. But it didn't. Instead, we saw Leviathan breathing heavily on the ground. The Archon growled, and stomped his foot, knocking Leviathan into a wall. "LEVIATHAN!" we shouted, but he didn't respond. I was angry. A Guardian, killed just like that!? It made no sense. "That's IT!" and I called upon a part of space and time to focus into an orb that I held, and I launched it the Archon's head, dealing a killing blow to him. I fell to the ground, and I fainted. The last thing I remember was Lianna rushing to me, shouting, "WARLOCK!" every 3 seconds, each time, her voice felt fainter, as my eyes began to shut.


	4. Union in Division

UNION IN DIVISION

* * *

The Baron known as Frigoris sat on his own chair in his room. _It's not a Kell's throne,_ he told himself, _but it's better than what I am used to._ Unlike other Captains who were Vandals for a while, he used to be a Dreg his whole life, which meant that he had to create his own prosthetic arms when he escaped from Draksis, the Kell of Winter. _Draksis was cruel, crueler than Virixas. Thank goodness that I escaped just in time._ He heard someone knocking, and quickly bandaged his arms, so that no one can see that they are robotic. "Fas ra vix?" (What is it?)

A Captain opened the door. "Tra fo is karakte!" (We're under attack!)

The Baron walked out into the hall, shrapnel gun in hand, walking with his lieutenant. "Ulte Fas?" (From what?)

"Tr vit is de tra fu do, sha ja de re orl nixkii!" (She crawled out of The Pit, and began to eat our soldiers!)

"Wix tys." (Typical Thrall.)

They entered outside, and the Exiled Baron saw everything. Hundreds of Vandals, Dregs, and Captains lay dead before Frigoris's feet, some even had bite marks. _Definitely the works of a Thrall, but they are not known to survive long against an army unless they came in a horde, and judging the footprints, there was only one. So, how could he have made it this far?_ The Baron smelled something fishy, coming from the shipyard. _Oh no!_ he thought, _Our skiffs!_ and he rushed to the shipyard, Captain in tow. When he arrived, Frigoris found that there wasn't a Thrall, nor any Hive soldiers in the yard, but instead a Guardian. Frigoris looked at the backside of a bald Guardian with bone-like brown armor. _Dredgen?_ he asked to himself. Then the Guardian turned around, and he managed to hide behind a skiff just in time, but his buddy wasn't so lucky. The Guardian hissed, and lunged at the Captain. Frigoris hid underneath an adjacent skiff, and watched the Guardian devour the Captains arms and legs, before moving to the cloak, and using that as a headband. Then, it moved to a ship, unlike any of the skiffs, and flew away on it. Frigoris crawled out, and tended to his friend. "Sti da," (Be still.) he said.

"Tri oc." (Three eyes.)

"Het is ther de." (And we have four.)

The dying grabbed Frigoris by the throat with his remaining claw. "Gradia di oc, dis fa tri!" (Guardians have two eyes, but this one had THREE!)

Frigoris understood what he meant as he closed his friend's eyes. _He's right. For a Guardian to have three eyes is unnatural. This means that the Hive have advanced their rituals. This means the City is in danger!_ He called in a Vandal, and said "Cosofe, ra wex cap. Fra is terh ule uxa" (Congratulations, you're my next lieutenant. Now tell everyone to prepare for our next attack) The new Captain bowed before Frigoris, and ran off to tell the others. Frigoris then sent a message to a Prime Servator. [Now is the time to strike!]

* * *

When I woke up, I was lying on a bed, in a different room. It was like a hotel suite, except it was more spacious. Lianna was outside talking to the Speaker. Leviathan was nowhere to be found. I straightened my back, got up, and stood up, away from the bed. Lianna came in with the Speaker. He was cloaked in white, and wore a white mask to conceal his face, which also looked white. "Welcome, Guardian," he said as he bowed. I bowed before him. "I know that you have an infinite number of questions." His voice sounded calm and relaxing. I looked out the window, and found a huge white orb floating over the City. "Is that The Traveler?"

"Yes, and this is its last stand."

"Last stand?"

"This is where The Traveler sleeps after its last battle with the Darkness. It crippled The Traveler, and left it here to die. And from its dying breath, The Traveler created the Ghosts, to seek out and/or train Guardians for when It comes back, and It will."

I looked at the Traveler again, this time I noticed how the bottom was broken off, exposing the machinery inside. I determined that I was going to help the City, any way that I can. "What can I do to help?"

"You must push back the Darkness, join the Guardians that are fighting on Earth."

"We have a Warp Drive. Can we fight beyond Earth?"

The Speaker looked outside for a minute, then said, "The Fallen are increasing their forces to surround and keep a tight guard on the Skywatch in the Cosmodrome. Break through their defences, kill their leader that lurks in there, steal whatever you can find, bring it back to the Vanguard, and you may go wherever you wish."

"Thank you." I bowed to the Speaker again, and he left the room. Leviathan appeared from the kitchen, crunching a soda can in his mouth. "Leviathan! Don't eat with your mouth open!"

He said, "Sauwy," then he swallowed, and spoke again. "Did he say we have to prove ourselves?"

I replied, "He did."

"Why can't we just go off to the Moon, or see the jungles of Venus?"

"He's worried about us. The Speaker wants to keep us safe," rebuttled Lianna.

"I'm pretty sure of that," he answered sarcastically.

I told Leviathan, "Show some respect."

"No. I'm done with your BS, Warlock. And you Lianna, Why do you side with him?"

"I try to keep-"

"-an open mind, yeah, yeah, I get it. Now get out of my room!" We left as soon as we could. Lianna marched off, and I struggled to keep up. She kept mumbling, "I should've left him in the Old Colony, I should have." I kept wondering what she meant by 'Old Colony', but continued to keep with her pace. When we arrived at the Shipyard, she turned around and yelled, "GET AWAY FROM ME!"

I asked, "What did I do?"

"You were stalking me!"

"I'm sorry. I thought you were going to the Cosmodrome again."

"I am. Alone."

"Well, I want to help."

"Then stay away!" she said defiantly.

"If it means anything, I disliked his guts too."

"Alright, but you're still not coming."

I looked at her, _She's not lying, she can take on a massive army without any help._ Right on cue, Rusty appeared. "Leviathan locked his door, so I guess I'm stuck with you guys."

Lianna looked at my Ghost. "No, I'm off to break the Fallen's hold on the Skywatch."

"It's guarded by Vandals and Captains."

"And I am the One Woman Army, remember?"

"Including a Devil Baron."

Lianna looked at Rusty. "What? A Devil Baron?"

"Outside the Lunar Complex."

Lianna looked at me and said, "You're coming, but don't get in my way."

"Yes ma'am."

"By the way, what's your name?"

"Max Prodigy, and yours?"

"Lilianna Qu'lene. Everyone just calls me Lily or Lianna."

"Well, I think it's a beautiful name, Lilianna."

"Thank you, Max!"

"If we're done here," said Rusty, "Then I think we ought to get moving."

* * *

Dredgen waited in the battleground of the Skywatch. He was waiting for Omnigul. He looked at his Thorn, one more time, and noticed that it still held 9 bullets left in the chamber, and that he didn't carry any extra rounds. _Damn. That barfight left me with one magazine. How am I supposed to kill Guardians now?_ "With this." Dredgen jerked around, and was almost about to shoot a bullet through Omnigul's head. He lowered Thorn and said, "Oh, it's you." Omnigul floated down to his level, and presented him with a giant sword. It was glowing a poisonous green, and looked transparent. As soon as Dredgen touched it,  HE started to transform, but it was very unstable. He screamed in anguish, he couldn't deal with the pain. "It's weak!" she said. Dredgen stood up. "You almost KILLED ME!" He pressed Thorn to Omnigul's head.

"Crota, please. We can revive you, we need time."

"We don't have time. My father has felt a disturbance, something that can throw off the Dark Lord. I've felt that presence too." He lowered his gun. "Oryx has moved up the schedule. It happens now or never. Raise my soul on Earth!"


	5. Darkness Descending

DARKNESS DESCENDS

* * *

Kabr knew he was dying. They were controlling his mind. The Oracles whisper his name. " _Kabr. Join us, Kabr._ " They had the voices of the Sirens, but the mind of The Templar. Kabr stared at that Hydra, and saw only fear within himself. The Goblins started to march down the steps, and the Minotaurs brought down a metal coffin. Kabr knew what he needed to do. _I must pierce their veil._ He placed his hand upon the metal disc that lay after the steps, and said, "I cast the last of my Light here. It shall descend, and learn from the Vex." Then he looked up, and commanded to the timestreams, "WHEN A FIRETEAM OF SIX ENTERS THIS VAULT OF GLASS, YOU SHALL BRING FORTH THE AEGIS TO THEM!" and removed his hand. As his vision turned to black, and the coffin was placed over him, Kabr whispered, "It is done. If I ever speak again, I am not Kabr."

* * *

Lilianna and I headed back to the Cosmodrome. We knew about our mission: break into the Lunar Complex that bordered the Skywatch, and steal anything that isn't nailed down. Rusty was the first to speak. "So, you two-"

I could read his mind. "No," I said. "We're not." Then I turned to him, "What's with the 'Devil Baron' business?"

My Ghost looked at me. "What?"

"You said that there was a Devil Baron."

"There is. I swear."

"And I know a bluff when I see one."

Rusty didn't speak for a while. I walked to the co-pilot's seat and sat down, facing the console. "Why is this prophesy important?"

Lilianna responded, "The Darkness is descending upon the solar system, and multiplying its strength per day. We need someone to offset it."

"And you think it's me?"

She looked at me and said, "Everyone does."

I changed the topic. "Do you really believe that there's a Devil Baron in the old Lunar Complex?"

"No."

 _Clever._ "So you're testing me?"

"What's with the questions?"

"I'm still adjusting to this world."

"Two things. First, tell your Ghost to stick to the truth when he speaks."

"HEY!" shouted Rusty.

The Hunter ignored him. "And second, I'm still trying to look for the Warlock from the prophesy." Lilianna stared at the console for a while. "And that reminds me..." she fumbled around pilot's area, until she found an armband. "Wear this, it will help to stabilize you when hurling Nova Bombs, or casting Radiance."

"Thank you, again."

At that moment, we landed in the Cosmodrome. "Okay," said Rusty, "the Skywatch is on the other side of the steppes." He paused for a moment and said in a decrescendo, "And...it's surrounded by Fallen." Lilianna readied her pulse and sniper rifles. "Well, what are we waiting for?" And she marched off. I pulled my Ghost aside. "Did you read the Prophesy carefully?"

"No. But, it said something about a Warlock, whose death came from a trial, and is reborn to lead."

"Are you guys going to sit around like this?" shouted Lilianna.

I loaded my scout rifle, and ran to meet her. We walked underneath a stone arch, carved by nature itself, to an artificial dam. As we approached it, Rusty mentioned, "It must've been amazing before the Collapse. Can you imagine how many humans boarded their shuttles to build cities beyond Earth?"

I guessed, "200 million?"

"Close," answered the Hunter. "About 251,400,000 people went to start a new life on the terraformed planets. Some wanted to start businesses or build innovations, most looked for jobs, and others wanted some time off."

"And I hope that the workers were paid before the CEOs."

She grinned. "That's why they called it The Golden Age."

To hear that the people would be supported in the end, that cheered me up. "Thank you!"

Rusty interrupted us with, "Up ahead is the Lunar Complex." _The building with the radar,_ I presumed. As we sprinted towards the complex, we were ambushed 3 times by the Fallen, and all three times we destroyed the competition. I took note of the rusted planes that lay in pieces among the ground. After walking up a hill to get to the complex, we surprised the two Vandals that stood outside the complex, and Lianna proceeded to stab and cut open their Captain in the back. _A crude dissection._ We traveled through a tunnel of rusty, skeletal rooms, and landed in an almost dark room covered in metal sheets, some of which are fractured. I examined one of the back corners of the room, only to find a sealed, opaque gate. _Dead end._ "But, I can get it open," replied my Ghost. So, I pulled him out, and pushed him to the console. He scanned it, punched in some numbers, and opened the gate. I asked, "Do I want to know what they keep under lock and key?"

Lilianna responded with, "Probably not," and pointed to one of the green crystalline structure that emerged from a pile of fungus.

I looked at the crystals up close, and plucked one from the structure. "Rusty, scan this."

When he did, he said, "That's impossible! It's made out of bo-"

"Bone marrow," Lianna finished.

Rusty shivered and said, "I've got a bad feeling about this." Halfway up a flight of stairs, it went from little lighting to pitch black. Rusty turned on his flashlight, and I could see black mist rising from some marrow fungi.

I heard a small shrill in far corner of the next pitch black room, then it grew. It sounded like a million terrifying, freezing, heart-palpitating, high-pitched screams. "No, It can't be!" shouted Rusty. Lilianna's Ghost said, "Yep."

I reloaded my scout rifle. "What is it, Rusty?"

"But it can't-" 5 skeletal zombies jumped off a platform at the far-end of the room, and ran towards us like they were on the track team. "It IS," realized Rusty, pure horror in his tone. The skeletal zombies just doubled their ranks. "IT'S THE HIVE!" They were upon us. I felt forty claws tearing into my very flesh. My response: I threw my vortex grenade at them, point blank range, and it blocked the doorway. That's when I shot four armored Hive, that were hiding behind the pillars. At that point, 20 more skeletons jumped out of nowhere. Lilianna shouted, "Leave the Thralls!" and threw her incendiary grenade at their feet, leaving them to decay. "If there are Hive here, then there must be a lieutenant controlling this swarm, A Wizard or a Knight."

After climbing a flight of stairs, I heard another shrill, different from the fifteen screaming Thralls that rushed towards us. "The Wizard," said Lilianna's Ghost, "Kill it!" Then I heard I growl, an earth-shaking growl. "The Knight!" Rusty was alarmed. "Impossible! Unless-"

"We're losing time," I said, "Let's take them both!" The Awoken Hunter began to snipe the Wizard, and managed to critically wound it, before she was chased by the Thralls. She tossed another grenade at the pursuers, and blew them all up. I was busy trying to avoid the Knight's sword, while landing a few blows from my shotgun. I hurled a Nova Bomb, but the Knight evaded it, and almost mangled me with its cleaver. For his punishment, he got three killer blows from Lilianna's Golden Gun.

I examined the scene. I took a piece of armor from both dead lieutenants, both of which sported a strange symbol. Rusty looked shocked. "That's the symbol of Spawn of Crota. That Knight and Wizard came from the Moon!"

"Huh, and this 'hand'?" I pointed to the symbol on the left side of the back of the Knight's helm.

"Wait." Rusty took a good look at it. "I think we just destroyed the Hand of Crota."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning that we just killed one of Crota's commanders. We have just enraged a Hive god."


	6. An Ancient Power

AN ANCIENT POWER

Crota stood in his Throneworld, waiting for his vessel to appear. He looked upon his sword, The Doombringer, and wanted to carve another rune into it. Such a rune would bring his soul, and by extension his Oversoul, into the realm of Earth. Right on schedule, Ir Yut, approached him. "Speak," boomed the emerald Hive Prince.

"Crota, I bring you good news and bad news," said the Deathsinger.

"Proceed." Crota had no time for games. He wanted to see his father again.

"So first, we were able to send your commanders down to Terra."

"Good! Then proceed with the plan!"

"But, your Hand was destroyed mere minutes after we summoned him," croaked Ir Yut.

Crota was shocked. He looked at his right hand. _It's crumbling before my eyes._ He felt it as well. Once, he tied a bond between his corporeal body to 9 Hive, bred from his blood, ages accelerated by his sorcery, and entrusted to keep him stable when he freed himself from his netherrealm and entered Earth's realm. _The brothers are my hand and fist, the triplets: my eyes, my daughter is the heart, my pet is my might, Nazra and his cult feed my blades, and my wife, Omnigul shares my will. I will endure._ He turned to look at Ir Yut. "Summon the Fist, and the Blades." Ir Yut floated away, and returned 3 minutes later with Sardon, and the Blades of Crota. "You're about to embark on a dangerous mission," he said to his remaining lieutenants.

"You're not going to try to take Terra again, are you?" Sardon was tired of Crota's games. The Fist wanted to just relax in a fiery Throneworld of his own.

Crota bellowed, "This time, it's foolproof!"

"How so?" asked a skeptical Blade.

"Nazra!" shouted Crota. Nazra, THE Sword of Crota (different from the Blades, his followers) approached his father. Crota kneeled to give Nazra a weapon. "This is a Weapon of Sorrow, the Necrochasm." Nazra took it from Crota, and a Blade attached the Necrochasm to Nazra's back. The power of the weapon seeped into Nazra. He growled with satisfaction. "I shall guard your Soulstone, my lord." A random Blade took the bone-dry husk of Necrochasm, and tied it to his own back using Hive sorcery.

"Then go, protect the site with Sardon, and bring the City to its knees."

* * *

We exited the Lunar Complex via the way we came in. "The Hand of Crota? On Earth? Impossible," muttered Lilianna's Ghost. "Oh, but we saw it with our own eyes, let alone up close," responded Lilianna, "which means we need to move quickly." She turned to Rusty and said, "I know of someone who can help." Rusty looked at her. "No! It's too risky!"

Lilianna's Ghost met Rusty's eye. "He can help us. You saw what he did on Venus."

"He doesn't want anything to do with the City."

"He also faced and survived against the Darkness, alone."

While the two Ghosts were arguing, I wanted to listen to some Led Zeppelin or Jimi Hendrix on my helmet, but all I got was some message in the garbled Fallen language. "Hey, Rusty!" Rusty floated to me and said, "Yes?"

"I keep getting a message that I can't understand. Can you translate it for us?"

Rusty scanned the helmet that I took off. "It seems like the Fallen are tapping into something in the Forgotten Shore. We can get there in time, if you have your Sparrows. And the only way to get them is to establish a link with an old node."

"Great! Where is it?"

Rusty looked at one of the ancient Cosmodrome buildings for 3 seconds, then turned back to us. I looked at Rusty. "Are you serious!? We ran a mile and a half to get here, plowing through Fallen who tried to ambush us, and you're saying that we could have saved some time if we went into that building?!"

"Um, yes."

I sighed. I felt like I wanted to kill him, but I was too tired to deal with Rusty, after what we've been through. Instead of pulling us off to the side and offering to grab our Hoverbikes for us, my Ghost wanted me to run around like a maniac. _Wait, how do I know that my Sparrow is a hoverbike?_ I looked around for something watching over us, but before I could find actual proof, Lilianna shouted, "What are you waiting for?" That's when I tried to keep up with her.

* * *

Dredgen Yor stood on a cliff overlooking the Mothyards. He knew his task, He knew what to do. Omnigul's words kept repeating themselves in his mind, _"Destroy the Warlock at all costs."_ He looked all over the Mothyards for this "hero", until he found the Warlock, coming out of the Lunar complex and sprinting across the frozen rock. He kept his eye on the Warlock. _The Guardian of Legend, within sniping range. I can end it, right now._ He took out his sniper, reloaded it, placed his finger on the trigger, and prepared to fire.

* * *

I tried to run, but my legs failed. **BANG! WHOOSH! pift.** That was when I started to run. **BANG! WHOOSH! pift.** I was an Olympic Athlete who was trying to catch up to the guy in first place in the Marathon, on the home stretch. Another **'** **BANG! WHOOSH! pift.'** and I was inside the building. The first thing I noticed was The Hunter standing over her Ghost, who was working on an old machine. "What took you so long?" asked Lilianna. I was breathing heavily, but managed to say, "Someone-" *pant* "tried-" *pant* "to-" *wheeze*. I took in some fresh air, before coughing out "kill us!" The Hunter looked at me and said, "Then we  do need our Sparrows."

"Say no more," replied Lilianna's Ghost, as she finished her work with the node. "Now let's get out of here!" I summoned my Hoverbike, and Lilianna spawned hers. They looked similar: two prongs in the front to protect a small steering console, which includes a GPS and a lever on one of the two handles for the boosters, a curve across the top from the console to the back to support a Guardian, two plates on either side of the back to rest the feet, and 3 separate engines that are arranged in an obtuse triangle that points up. Lilianna jumped onto her bike, I hopped on mine, and we raced each other to the Shore. After 5 more misfires from the sniper on the cliff, we drove through a canyon that was full of turns every 500 meters, and had a river flowing through it. The canyon was about 5000 meters, give or take 400, and it took 2 minutes to navigate through it. The Sparrows that we rode on were louder than a rock concert or a NASCAR race. About halfway through, The Hunter shouted, "WAIT UP!"

"You outran me twice today!" I shouted when she reached me. "Besides, I think you're enjoying this!"

Lilianna shouted, "500 glimmer?"

"I don't gamble," I shouted back.

"1000?"

"Like I said, I don't gamble on chance. I prefer knowledge over cash. Besides, we're already at the Shore."

The Forgotten Shore: as grey as the Mothyards, only with more cliffs. To the left of an old OKB building 600 meters away from the canyon, rusted ships lay on the level shore itself, and to the left of those ships, an old highway with a tunnel leading to the Terrestrial Complex. We, on the other hand remained still, by the canyon's exit, assessing the situation. "I'm getting some feeds on the radio," remarked my Ghost, "Not Fallen. Older. Golden Age? But it can't be. It isn't."

"Still, I think we should check it out," I said, and the four of us rode over to the closest ship. Lilianna and I jumped off our Sparrows and jumped up to the small hull of the ship, and killed 4 Fallen each. Rusty materialized to scan the Fallen node. "It's tapping into something ancient, but powerful," then he gasped, "It is Him."

"Who?" I asked.

"The last Warmind," responded Lilianna.

"And no, we are NOT asking for help," snapped Rusty.

As we walked toward the rusted building to the right of the ships, Lilianna explained how the Golden Age gave birth to powerful AI known as the Warminds. "They were once the most powerful things in the solar system. Designed by humanity, they were the first and last lines of defence against the Darkness." She paused for a moment, as we reached the rocky slope leading to the building, then added, "However, none were known to survive, until I found one. One day on Patrol, I got these weird comms in Ancient Russian. I started following the signal, then I realized it was coming from an underground bunker from below the Forgotten Shore. That's when I stopped following it, and started reading up on AI and Warminds." 15 seconds and 8 dead Dregs later, we approached the second Fallen node to scan it. Rusty said, "Yep, same transmission."

Then it started to speak. "Привет? Может кто-нибудь услышать меня?"

I said, "Um, Hi. We're just-" before I was cut off.

"Max?" asked the Warmind in his thick moderate accent, "Is that you?"


	7. The Eyes of Hell

THE EYES OF HELL

"Rasputin?," then I reverted to Russian, "После столь долгого времени? Каким образом?"

Rasputin grinned (if AI could grin), while The Hunter stood in shock and awe. "You two know each other?"

"We were once colleagues," I said.

"We were responsible for the downfall of Trump," added Rasputin.

Lilianna had too many questions flowing in her head, some about the Warmind, others about The Warlock, all of them about our friendship. "Who is Trump?" she asked.

"An asshole!" Rasputin and I decided to give the 'long story made short' version.

"How do you know each other?"

I piped up. "I met his father in a Russian prison. Brilliant guy. I was there for the beta test and ribbon cutting of this Warmind."

"So," Lilianna turned to the node, "You're the first Warmind, AND the last?"

"Yes, but there isn't much time to explain," announced the Warmind, "There is an array found in the Terrestrial Complex, you must activate it if you hope to reach the Moon."

"Why can't you?" challenged The Hunter.

"I was going to," The Warmind said, "But I was stopped by the Fallen House of Kings. They're holding me hostage inside of a command node, and it wasn't just cobbled together."

I kept wondering on how the Fallen could hold a Warmind hostage within their tech, unless there was something else in control of the Kings. "We'll head over there, destroy the node, activate the array, and open up extraterrestrial travel once again." I was walking away from the antennae node when Rasputin called out, "Max." I turned to look at him again. "You'll need this." Rasputin 'gestured' to a crate, with a new weapon inside. I opened it, took the firearm, and he said, "Be careful." I replied with, "I will." With an exit, Lilianna and I rode on our Sparrows, and reached the highway tunnel leading to the Terrestrial Complex.

Inside the tunnel were a few concrete barriers, preventing our bikes from passing. Behind these barriers (that we could vault over) was another rusted room, designed similarly to the Lunar Complex, and 4 Dregs patrolled it. I pulled out my scout rifle, Lilianna whipped out her pulse, and together we charged in, killing Dreg after Dreg, eventually moving onto the Vandals, who charged at us with their swords. _Maybe my new weapon will teach these guys a lesson._ That's when I tested out the Fusion Rifle. With one charged Electrostatic blast, the Vandals were shot back, left sprawling on the floor. Lilianna marveled at this, so I gave her the rifle to test it out for herself, on a Captain. "Nice!" she exclaimed, and handed the weapon back to me. "Do you think we can make more of them?" A southern metallic voice crept from the shadows. I turned around to see who it was. "Leviathan," I said in disgust.

"Still don't forgive me?" he said.

"You never apologized," snapped Lilianna.

"Well, I'm sorry for my rude behavior."

I looked at Leviathan's eyes. "You're lying," I said.

"No really," this time he was more remorseful, and held out a dead Ghost. "I found it among the Fallen, and it has codes to an array here in the complex."

I took the Ghost. "Thank you," and with that I dismissed him, until Lilianna put a hand on my shoulder, just as I was walking up the steps. "Wait," she said, "give him another chance."

"He was rude to The Speaker, and he wanted you to conform to his wishes. I'd say we'd leave him to his own mission." I began to climb the stairs again, but this time her right hand dug into my left shoulder. "Give him one more chance, just one, then you can judge." I looked into her beautiful brown eyes, delved into her mind, and watched her in battle with the Exo Titan known as Leviathan-1.

The two have led a Strike unto the Devils' Lair, killing the Devils' Chief Baron Naksis, destroying a Devil Walker and the Devils' Prime Servitor, Sepiks Prime; a battle on the Moon to reclaim Archer's Line, but ultimately failed ended with Leviathan undergoing his first transformation; a disaster on Venus due to some bipedal war machines that warp out of nowhere, which led to the 'regeneration' of Leviathan-2 into his third consciousness. I saw her pain of losing her only friend twice, having to put up with the regressive Leviathan-3, and wanting to leave him behind in the Old Colony. The Old Colony looked abandoned and filled with forests, except for a giant city: New York. In that place, they took on a whole battalion of Fallen, with some unrecognizable banners, most likely the remnants of the House of Stone. The two of them fought wave after wave of Vandals and Dregs, before taking out the 6 Captains commanding the horde. Lilianna told Leviathan to chase after them and to find their Prime Servitor, while she would report back to the City. _So that's what you meant by "I should have left him."_ She would get on her transport, and leave him to face the Prime alone. Until she said, "Might as well destroy the Prime myself," and followed Leviathan from above, as he progressed through the labyrinth of streets to the Prime in Central Park. After a tiresome battle on The Titan's end, The Hunter opened fire on the Servator, and broke the House of Stone for good.

I reverted back to reality. "Loyalty," I said. Then she abruptly said, "Who do you trust?" Something felt off. I pulled away and said, "Let's move out!" and we climbed a second set of stairs leading to the room with the Fallen command node, but not before I pulled Leviathan off to the side for some words. "If you sexualize Lilianna, or force her to conform to your wishes, I won't be as forgiving as her. Understood?" He was shaking, afraid of my presence, but he managed to say, "Y-y-yes." With that, I turned him loose.

When we entered the room, Lilianna had already killed 5 Stealth Vandals with her Pulse Rifle, and a throwing knife headshot. Leviathan took the right side of the room headstrong with his Auto Rifle and Shotgun, while I claimed the left with accurately placed Scout and Fusion Rifle shots. One Captain caught the full blast of the Arc Fusion, and was electrified immediately. Lilianna took care of the middle of the room, shooting at 4 Vandals, and stabbing 8 Dregs. Once we cleared the room, we approached the command node on the far left side. I pulled out my Ghost, and he went straight for the node. "All right, let's see what they've got." But as soon as Rusty started hacking the node, we heard a screech, leaving Leviathan with only a tremor in his hand. Lilianna looked at me and said, "Still have 12% of a plan?"

I grinned back at her through my helm, "More like 30%." Knowing my sense of humor, she smiled back through her helmet, and the three of us charged into battle. Leviathan was having a fun time throwing his grenades and Havoc Fists at the waves of Vandals and Dregs that appeared out of the cabinets surrounding the room; Lilianna enjoyed melting the Captains with her Golden Gun, while I was busy handling each Servator that led the Fallen troops. It was pandamonium, complete and utter chaos, but in some way we liked it. After 3 minutes, Rusty shouted, "I found a weak spot, and I'm exposing it. Destroy the node now!" Leviathan, too busy with the Stealth Vandals, pulled out a Rocket Launcher, lifted himself up, and fired an RPG at the Vandal pack. He reloaded the Heavy Weapon, and fired another rocket, this time at the node, effectively reducing it to scrap. The House of Kings, in turn, ran away. "BOO-YAH!" shouted the Titan. "Now we can call it a day."

"Well, we were going to open up extraterrestrial travelling, but if you're not interested-," before I could continue, Leviathan was gone. "Typical. He complains about a problem, yet he doesn't pursue the solution."

After Leviathan's exit, Lilianna and I climbed up the stairs to the empty Array room, and we moved to the far right, where a giant "Mission Control"-like console stood against a wall in an alcove. Opposite to the console, about 10 meters away, was an opening to the Complex's courtyard, and beyond that was the dormant array. In the courtyard there was a ramp, surrounded by a u-shaped platform that is level to the console room. The ramp led to the two-leveled courtyard, with the lower level being the furthest from the console. The entire place was covered in metal sheets, with the occasional ancient server randomly placed throughout the yard.

As we approached the console, Rusty materialised with the dead ghost in tow, and activated the array. "Ok, that should do it! Now we can-" Rusty was interrupted by the appearance of 3 Hive Tombships; wide, rounded tops with skinny tessellating bottoms that can fire 4 void blasts simultaneously, all made from the reforged and blackened bones of their enemies: Every living thing. "They're coming to sabotage it!" He said.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious," shouted Lilianna.

The center ship came up close to the ramp and stopped, whereas the left and right ones disappeared out of eyeshot. Underneath the Tombship, the skinny bottom started to open up from the back to the front, dropping the marrow that later formed into the legion of Thralls and Acolytes, led by a single Wizard. Then the Tombship disappeared "Let's send these guys back to their graves!" I shouted. The Hunter raised her Pulse Rifle, and fired upon the Thrall, with only 3 reaching her, attempting to lunge. Lilianna jumped twice, threw her knife at one, took it from the reduced marrow, and then proceeded to kill the other two with it. Meanwhile, I focused on the Acolytes, placing headshot after headshot, until all 4 were expired, which left the floating Wizard breathing air in her lonesome. She threw down a poison orb, then proceeded to fire bolts of darkness, all of which were directed at us. The Hunter sprinted to the right, while I went to the left. She shouted, "Hey Max!" I turned around. "Do you think witches burn?" she continued, holding up her Incendiary Grenade. I grinned, "I don't think we need ducks to find out." She grinned back, and threw her grenade at the Wizard's 'feet'. The result: A dead Wizard, and another Tombship rolling in.

This one carried 15 Thrall, 10 Acolytes, and one Knight brandishing a cleaver. The Knight and his Thrall charged towards us, all of them swung their sharp cleaver and claws at us. We jumped out of the way. Holding myself in the middle of a glide, I fired another Fusion round at the Knight, electrocuting him, then finishing the Thrall with a Vortex grenade. Lilianna aimed down her Pulse Rifle sights, and killed 5 Acolytes with headshots, 3 without, and the last 2 with her knife. The last Tombship appeared and dropped 25 Thrall, 20 Acolytes, 2 Wizards, and one Knight with a Boomer. The Hunter drew her sniper, and shot down the Wizards. That's when the entire bottom tessellated, and dropped 3 identical Acolytes with curved horns and Boomers. With a single growl from the triplets, the Thrall attacked. "RUN AWAY!" I shouted. We are exhausted. "What now?" asked the Hunter. The Thrall legion were still charging, and we were backed into a corner. "Do you have a grenade?" I asked.

"Just one."

"When I tell you, toss it downward." The Thrall were closing in. "When?" she asked. They flanked us. "Now!" I shouted. They lunged. We jumped. She threw it, and melted all of them. Enthused, she shouted, "Yeah! Now let's take of the rest of them." The Knight was still out there, lobbing bombs from his boomer. "How many rounds in your Fusion?"

"One." I fired it at the Knight, but only cracked his armor. "How about your sniper?"

She fired two shots into the Knight's head, killing it. "Right now, none."

I looked for the Acolytes, shooting them as I spotted them, all the while avoiding bombs being lobbed. The triplets growled, then charged up the ramp, and into the complex. Lilianna noticed that 3 Acolytes each had symbols similar to the one found on the Hand of Crota, and each of them had the shape of an eye next to it. She told me, "It's the Eyes, Max! The Eyes of Crota!" That's when I ran and glided out of the control room. 2 of the Eyes followed us, while one was trying to destroy the console. Rusty then locked in the Array to the Warmind, who then said, "I've got this!" and from the console, Rasputin triggered an electrostatic defence on the Eye, dismantling it into bone marrow. The other seemed to be strengthened by their brother's death, and fired twice as many shots as before. Lilianna then raised her hand to the sky, called for her Golden Gun, and melted the second Eye with all three shots. The last one, due to the deaths of the other two, was invincible. I threw everything except for my Nova Bomb (because it's on cooldown), nothing could even scratch him. Then I noticed a Hive urn, _deliberately placed by the Eyes,_ I thought. _I wonder if...,_ then without thinking, I jumped over last Eye, lured him to the urn, regained my Nova Bomb, and hurled it at the urn and the Eye. The Acolyte wilted and screamed. His voice cut through the air, and left everyone lying on the ground, even the Warmind had trouble getting up in his virtual space. When we all came to, I asked, "Is everyone alright?"

"We're okay," said Rusty.

"Speak for yourself," said the Hunter, "Your ears aren't even sore!"

"In case if you're wondering, I'd like a pair of earmuffs if that happens again," said Rasputin. We returned to the console. "Now, I have established contact with the servers on the Moon, but I'll need you guys to activate it for me when you get there."

"So that's it? Reclaiming stuff?" Lilianna asked, "It sounds boring."

"Alright, so I'm getting new readings on the Moon. Fallen, but of-," he was cut short. I asked, "Ras? What's happening?" For a while, there was only silence. Then after 2 minutes, he replied with a static voice, "They're invading my bunker guys! The Will of Crota is here!"


	8. Fallout Shelter

FALLOUT SHELTER

Nazra knelt before the soulstone in the Grotto, his sword planted into the ground. His Blades stood on guard, the one with the Husk of Necrochasm stood near the entrance. Sardon, the Fist, stood behind The Sword of Crota, waiting for the Will to return. Nazra then said, "Understood, father," stood up to lift his sword, and walked over to Sardon. "The Eyes, they're...dead." Sardon looked at Nazra, "So it is true," he said in horror, "The Guardians are coming." Sardon remembered the high-pitched scream that almost caused the Grotto to cave in. Then he remembered all of the lieutenants, The Eyes, The Might, The Will, The Heart, The Sword, The Hand, and The Fist himself, and he realized that only 5 remain. "What will we do if they find us?" he asked Nazra. The Heart jumped in to say, "They won't. Omnigul sent herself to the Warmind's bunker, giving us enough time to resurrect Crota." Then she addressed The Sword, "Now brother, place your hand on the stone and we'll begin to summon him." But before he could, someone shouted, "Not if **I** have anything to say!" The voice came from the other end of the Grotto, where an Awoken female stood, clad in armor made from tempered Hadium and shaped to look like light samurai armor. Her three glowing green eyes were covered by a bandana, and her hood had two points on the top, made to look like it was squared off. The Heart growled in horror, "She's here!" then in panic, "I'll move the stone to the Moon with Nazra. Sardon, stay here with the Blades, and fight off that condemned thing!" Eris Morn has never heard such compliments ever since leaving the Hellmouth.

* * *

Lilianna and I spawned our Sparrows as soon as we reached the Shore. Rusty relayed the coordinates to the Bunker, and we drove to it, landing in the same place where we found the second antenna. "This way!" shouted Rusty, and we descended down two sets of stairs, just as the sun was setting, and the sky started to turn to black. When we reached the bottom, I heard ballet music that sounded ominous and mysterious. After a while, The Warmind's black diamond doors began to open, leading into a geometric and futuristic diamond tunnel with flat floors and 3 sets of stairs, all separated by an alternation between the two. Rasputin asked, "Max?" then inquired, "MAX!? Where are you?" As soon as we reached the Seraphim Vault (which was incredibly spacious compared to the entrance tunnel), Leviathan came running down the stairs. "Wait...for...me," he puffed. I looked at him sternly. "Why now?" He caught his breath and straightened his back. "Huh?" he asked. Lilianna stepped in, "Max is asking you, 'Why do you decide to help us now?'" Leviathan said, "Listen, I want to help."

I stared at him. "Because you think that Lilianna can't do it alone? She killed the Hand of Crota and one of his Eyes. If anything, you're the weak one."

Leviathan didn't speak for a minute. His reality was shattered, his misconceptions were destroyed. He realized that, for the first time, a Titan was attacking one of his own friends. When he saw the Thrall charging towards us, he pulled out his Auto Rifle, and destroyed each wave of yellow-tinted Thralls and Acolytes, which were identified as the Spawn of Crota. The Titan never spoke.

We followed him down the large hallway and up the large set of stairs to the left, which leads to the main CPU. In the room just before, a yellow-tinted knight stood there with his boomer, and I disintegrated him with only a single Fusion blast. That's when we got another mysterious transmission. "Guardian, this is Eris Morn of the Hidden. I notice that you are inside Rasputin's bunker. I'm sending over a relic that I found from the carcass of a Blade of Crota." Then a weapon was dropped out of thin air, and into my hands. Eris then said, "Keep your eyes open." I managed to reply, "Thank you, Eris," but the line was already dead, and we went to check on The Warmind via his control panels.

The CPU was placed in a fairly large, circular room. The control panel was opposite the polygonal CPU stack, which was opposite the room that we just came out of. We ran down the right side of the room, to the panel. At first everything seemed normal, until the screens on the control panel froze, and the lights began to flicker. "MAX!?" Rasputin shouted, "I CAN'T SEE ANYTHING!" That's when a poisonous green orb appeared, and began to enlarge itself in the center of the control panel. Out of the orb appeared a yellowish-tan Wizard with glowing blue eyes, a pair of devilish diamond horns, and a red cloak with Hive armor reserved for generals. The Wizard cackled like she was the Wicked Witch of the West. Rasputin switched the ominous music to the Wicked Witch's theme, only slowed down to half the time, and with a few extra lines thrown in for good measure. Eris, through my intercom, could hear everything. "Omnigul!" she said in anger, "Silence her screams!" The Will cackled and sent her Thrall into battle. This gave me a good time to test out the bone-dry weapon.

It was terrifyingly fast. It was treachery waiting to happen. It spat out 30 poisonous rounds within 3 seconds. It looked like it was taken straight out of a giant skeleton, then rigged by some mysterious magic that felt like it could feed off of the user. It was also on our side. This Husk began to mow through the Thrall like it was carving swiss cheese, and it didn't stop until all of the Thrall were expired. Omnigul then teleported herself into the room opposite the panel. Another screech and a few flickering lights, and 2 green orbs appeared between the CPU and Omnigul. Each of these orbs carried a red-eyed clone of Omnigul and Ir Yut called a Waker of Crota, two Knights, and 4 Thrall. Lilianna took out her sniper, and landed 4 headshots into the 4 Knights that spawned. "Care for some lead?" she asked a Waker. The Waker screamed, and disintegrated due to a scorching throwing knife in the head. "1 shot of iron, served," then to the other Hive, "Who's next?" The Thrall ran away, the other Waker summoned a large, green, poisonous, holographic Vestige below her, and Leviathan knocked her out with 3 shotgun shells.

The Will cackled again, and 3 orbs appeared out of nowhere. The Wakers that came out immediately cast down their Vestiges, everyone else came charging after us. The Hunter pulled out her pulse rifle, and murdered 6 Thrall with it, while I tore up the rest with the Husk. The Titan killed all 6 Knights with one Fist of Havoc, and proceeded to charge after one of the Wakers. I saw what he was doing. _It's suicide!_ That's when I used the Fusion Rifle to knock out the Waker's shield, so that Leviathan could kill the Wizard. Lilianna, on the other hand, didn't need help taking down the other two Wakers. She laced two bullets with gasoline, and fired them into each of the Wakers' heads. When the bullets arrived at their destinations, the solar shields ignited the fuel, thus nullifying the shields and burning the Wakers to a crisp.

Omnigul was infuriated. She growled, and striking both of her hands down, The Will summoned one large orb, which exploded into a giant mutated Hive with a bulging frame. Eris Morn saw through my helmet. "An Ogre! Crota has done the impossible!" I asked, "An Ogre? It looks nothing like Shrek!" Lilianna and Rasputin were the only ones to laugh. Leviathan stood in shock and awe. I knew the look on his face, complete and utter terror. He ran as soon as the Ogre slammed its fists down. Once we regrouped, it shot a huge devastating laser from its giant head, and began to burn through the panel and some of the cooling tubes leading to the CPU. The Ogre then marched over the rubble, and fired its laser again. Leviathan then muttered a few words to himself, then to The Hunter, "Take care of yourself," and charged towards the Ogre. He threw his flashbang grenade at its feet, blinding it, then sent 2000 volts into its back via a 'storm punch,' then lifted himself into the air, shouted some ancient words, and sent himself face first onto the Ogre's head, crushing it. Omnigul screamed, and disappeared without a trace.

Leviathan lay motionless, Rasputin was having trouble regulating his systems, and I just froze. The Hunter dropped her weapons, and ran over to her dying friend. I inched closer. The Titan kept saying, "It's over." Lilianna replied, "We'll help you out, just regenerate!"

"No, I can't," and he turned his head, revealing a fried circuit. She gasped. Leviathan turned to me and said, "I guess I was good for something after all," then looked the heated CPU, "Plug me in there, and get your friend in here."

I responded, "He won't be able to control the WARSATS."

"No, but he can steer them." The Titan turned back to Lilianna, while I scrambled to find the cords. I tore apart the whole room before the Warmind said, "Behind the panel, trapdoor, USB cables." I took everything out of the trapdoor, and brought it over to the dying Leviathan, whose helmet I had to remove, in order to complete the transfer. I took a good look at his head, pulled out some wires, and jammed one side of the cable into him. "Let's bring him over to the Warmind," and with that, Lilianna and I dragged the Exo over to the left side of the CPU stack, and I plugged the other side of the cable into the giant computer. Rasputin said, "Transferring," and Leviathan whispered, "Good-bye." The next thing we knew, Rasputin announced through the Exo, "Transfer complete. Now let's get out of here!" Lilianna said, "No, I'm not leaving him." Leviathan announced through the speakers, "You must." I could feel the computer heating up to 60 degrees celsius, then 100 degrees, and I ran for the door. "I can't!" shouted The Hunter, and before I knew it, Rasputin put on his new helmet, took The Hunter by the arm, and started dragging her away. "NOOOOOOOO!" she screamed. As I looked back, I could feel sympathy for the dying Leviathan, even if he was a bit regressive. He had seen so much with Lilianna, and even destroyed Sepiks Prime with her. He shouted, "RUN!" and the doors to the CPU closed behind me. I ran out of the Seraphim Vault, behind Rasputin and The Hunter, and then finally escaping the Bunker itself with them. Lilianna was freed from the Warmind's grasp, but still cried out, "NOOOOOOOOO!" and then the entrance was sealed. We felt a rumble, but we knew what had happened.

* * *

Pahanin managed to escape the Vault of Glass. He had to tell the others. He pulled out his Ghost. "Nightingale?" The Ghost responded with a high-pitched male voice, "Yes?"

"Can you pull us to orbit?"

Nightingale said, "Hold on," and she scanned the area. "I think so. But, it will require a transmat."

"Which I can provide." A female Exo appeared out of nowhere, and surprised Pahanin. The Vault immediately closed its doors. "I can help you," she said. Pahanin was shocked. "Help me?" he scoffed, "My best friends are lost in time, shattered by its winds, and thoroughly written out of history!" He turned to go. "I doubt that you can help me at all." The Exo then said, "Praedyth isn't dead, I just met him." Pahanin stopped. "Hold on," he said. Thinking about how Praedyth was dead and alive at the same time, it seemed impossible. "How, in the name of the Traveler, is Praedyth still alive?"

"He is trapped inside the Vault, and bound by its will," she said, "In this timeline, like some of the others, he is dead. But he is alive in other timelines, saved by you or Kabr, or both. And in one timeline, you three never came here." Pahanin scratched the top of his hood. "How?" he asked.

She paused. "I've got no time to explain how Time works, but I need you for something, and it involves The Prophecy."


	9. Burning Vengeance

BURNING VENGEANCE

"I'm sorry for your loss," said the Warmind. "NO YOU'RE NOT!" screamed the Awoken Hunter, "YOU LEFT HIM THERE TO DIE IN AN EXPLOSION THAT SHOULD'VE KILLED YOU!" She sat down and cried. We were still recuperating from Leviathan's death. I stood beside The Hunter. "He died nobly," I told her as I sat down. "If Rasputin was in there, we probably would be killed by the WARSATS right now." Lilianna sniffed. I said, "If you want to blame anyone, it's Omnigul who killed your friend."

"She wanted to destroy Rasputin, not Leviathan," the Hunter said angrily, "This Warmind used my friend as a means of escaping death."

I resolved, "Leviathan risked his life to save a Warmind and an asset to the City." Lilianna kept staring at the bunker doors. Then I added, "But, I know that you want revenge."

She looked at me with confusion and a hint of bitterness. "Excuse me?"

"Omnigul killed Leviathan, so let's avenge him." I stood up. The Hunter stopped sobbing, stood up, and said. "Alright, but Rasputin can't come." The Warmind protested, "Actually, I know how to infiltrate the Jovian Complex. Plus, I want my revenge, too."

"Then it's settled! Let's hunt some orc!" Rasputin grinned at the reference. Lilianna and Rusty were confused. "Orc?" asked Rusty. "I thought that we were tracking down the Hive," added Lilianna. I asked Rasputin, "When can we prepare a Lord of the Rings marathon?" He replied with, "When we're done with this." With that, we finally reached the surface again, pulled out our Sparrows, rode to the Terrestrial Complex, ran through all of it, until we made it to a large battlefield called the Skywatch.

The Skywatch, or what's left of it, is just one snowy field, with a hill that elevates the Terrestrial Complex and the Fallen side of the battleground, which contained a few OKB buildings and nodes. On the Hive side lies the Jovian Complex, with a giant Hive spire that mutilated that complex and remains there as an entrance, and a bunch of smaller spires that looked polygonal and wretched at the same time, each looking like a piece of architecture from Mordor. The Lunar Complex, which lies opposite to the whole battlefield, is guarded by Fallen, but remains neutral. The whole landscape was bare, not a speck of vegetable life anywhere. When we entered the Skywatch, a small tombship came and dropped off a Knight in the middle of the battlefield.

Eris Morn called us while we were in the middle of a fight with a Knight called 'Protector of the Will'. "Guardian," she said, "Omnigul will not stop fighting until her master's will is done, and she is not like any Wizard you have faced." When Rasputin was done perforating the Knight with his shotgun, he spoke through his helmet, "No kidding! She tried to kill me with an Ogre!"

"It was called the Might of Crota, one of the first Ogres to be bred from the pit." Eris paused for a moment while we passed through the giant spire to reach the Jovian Complex. As we reached the next door to the complex to hack it, she said, "You must know that Crota is rising, and if he does, then the Earth, and the Universe with it, will perish." I failed to see how a mysterious Hive prince who works through his generals could possibly render the whole universe asunder, but then again, we were hunting down one of his top generals in a secluded building, and the only way that could happen is if... I called Eris back. "Alright. Let's just say that I do believe you, and that this 'Crota' is rising, what would you suggest is our next course of action?"

"Go to the Moon, and destroy his soulstone."

"Ok," I responded, "Can we do that after we kill Omnigul?"

"Yes, but you must hurry!"

"We will," and the line went dead. Lilianna's Ghost said, "Got it! Let's move!"

The interior of the Complex was like the first part of the Lunar Complex, but worse. Instead of darkened rooms, it was littered with Hive crystals and marrow. Even the walls and internal frame of the architecture were sprouting with marrow and crystals. In the middle of the complex was a giant opening, and below that was a giant marrow ramp leading to a small hallway that leads to the last room. When we passed through the door leading to the Jovian Complex, we took a right, then turned right to find Omnigul. She screamed, sent her Thrall and Acolytes into battle, then disappeared. "Here are your orcs, Lilianna."

"Very funny," she said sarcastically, and she destroyed some of the Thrall with her pulse rifle at first, then she slit throats of Thrall that came too close. For the Acolytes and the Wizard, the Hunter threw her new Swarm grenade at them, and they were left with several burning perforations on their skulls and chests that ate away their marrow. We took another left into the marrow ramp and the open-air roof 1000 meters above us, and although we couldn't find the Will of Crota, we could hear her screaming from the next room. That's when the horde of Thrall came running down the ramp, claws sharpened to spears, and backed by 4 Acolytes and 2 Knights, one of which was standing on a ledge, and lobbing arc bombs from his boomer. Rasputin decided to use his "new" Fist of Havoc on the Thrall, electrocuting them, and leaving a shocking aftermath in its wake. "Hulk smash!" he said. I chuckled. The Hunter rolled her eyes, sniped both of the Knights, and finished the Acolytes with her Pulse rifle. "You know," she said, "You two won't grow up at all."

Rasputin replied, "Lighten up, Lili."

"It's Lilianna!" she said angrily.

"Alright, Lilianna. All we're doing is cracking jokes, no one can be this serious all of the time."

She sighed, and dashed into the mini-hallway leading to the next room. We followed her lead.

The room that Omnigul was hiding in was close to pitch-black, if it weren't for the hanging crystals on each pillar covered in spores and marrow. The floor had patches of marrow and crystals surrounding the pillars, against the walls, or just scattered on the floor in general. The room used to be a small cube-sized control center, with a T-shaped platform with the right angles facing toward us, for Jovian expeditions; now it was the hiding and breeding grounds of Omnigul, The Will of Crota. She screamed as soon as she saw us, and began to summon her spawn.

The Thrall came first, and when they came close, they were easily dismantled. The Hunter found two Wizards, threw her fiery knife at one's head, then sniped the other with two petrol-coated shots. Rasputin threw his pulse grenade, and took down The Will's shield. "Let me have some fun!" I shouted, before jumping and gliding up to the middle platform, and hurling a Nova Bomb at Omnigul, only to discover that she relished in its 'vortex aftermath'. Rasputin used a few shotgun blasts to dice her up, only to be blasted away by her bolts of darkness. The Acolytes came out of the shadows next, we retreated to the hallway, and started to work on a new strategy. "Ok, the typical smash and grab isn't going to work here, so what's next?" I asked.

Rasputin piped up, "We could try the 'Three Prongs'."

Lilianna was a little confused, even though she still had a bitter rage.

"Charging on three fronts, then closing in on the target? I like it!" I've always wanted to try that out since being resurrected.

The Hunter was already at her feet, moving towards the left side, killing Acolytes with her knife. "And she's ready to take on the world," remarked the Warmind. "Ras, she already has." I gave him a pat on the back, to give him a few memories of Lilianna, then killed the Wizards in the middle, before knocking out Omnigul's Arc shield with a Fusion blast. Meanwhile, the Warmind took care of the right side, only using the Husk, which I gave to him earlier. That's when everyone converged their focus on the Will. Ras used his shotgun to perforate Omnigul, The Hunter would use her sniper to land headshot after headshot, and I would use my scout rifle to deal damage in general. The Will responded by tossing down a poisonous orb, lobbed at the Warmind, and by calling upon 3 Knights: one on the floor on the left side, another on the right side ledge, and the last one at the top of the 'T'.

"New plan, guys," shouted the Hunter, "ATTACK!" She stabbed the left Knight at least 5 times, Ras used 2 shells on the middle one, and I electrocuted the one on the ledge. The two wizards that guarded Omnigul hurled dark bolts at us, and that was enough for the Hunter. All I heard was a "RAHUGH!" and she charged her knife with electricity, elongating it by 10 centimeters. She lunged at the Wizards, shaving through their solar shields and decapitating them with a single swipe. "THIS IS FOR LEVIATHAN!" she shouted, and charged at the Will. With her shield down, Omnigul was defenceless against each cut, slice, and stab of Lilianna's Arc Knife. Finally, The Hunter plunged the Knife into the skull of Omnigul, then taking it out, and giving her an absolute decapitation. There was only a short scream in the end, but it was more painful than that of the Eye's, in the sense that it could remain in my memory for a long time. After her act of rage, Lilianna was exhausted. She dropped her blade, and I could just see fury, mixed with sadness in her eyes. I knew that she got her taste of revenge, and suffered its consequences. I walked towards her, but she said, "Why is the world so cruel?"

"Because it is. No one can explain it, but some forces will take everything from us, and we will want to lash out in anger, to exact upon our enemies the scars that they inflicted upon us." I sat down, and risked my arm by comforting her. "But we can't, otherwise we are just like them. We need to prove ourselves to be brighter than our foes. That is our fight. That is why we are Guardians." She rested her head on my shoulder for 5 seconds, then she said, "Maybe you're right, maybe we all need to contain ourselves."

"To a limit." Then I said, "Rusty?"

"Yes, Max?"

"Take us home. We need all the rest we can get."

Eris interrupted, "Not yet. You need to go to the moon! They are starting to wake Crota!"


	10. The Dark Side

THE DARK SIDE

Crota stood by his summoning crystal in his Throne world. _At long last, I will finish off that helpless rock that they call the Earth._ Ir Yut approached him. "My lord, the waking ritual is underway!" The Hive Prince grinned evilly at this. "Good. Now we must prepare-" And just like that, he could feel himself losing balance as his arms and legs cracked and shattered. He understood everything that had happened. _My wife and my pet are dead? I don't_ understand. He cried for a second, then clenched his Fist of Darkness, picked up his sword (which hasn't been shattered into spirit form), and called upon his father. "ORYX! I DEMAND AN AUDIENCE!" Crota walked into the open, where a jet-black silhouette of a winged wizard with two horizontal horns appeared. The silhouette said, "Yes?"

"We are almost ready for the final phase."

"Good," the silhouette continued, "I heard that you were losing lieutenants to a Warlock."

Crota bit his lip. "This Warlock is a mere trespasser, and he will be dealt with."

The silhouette was impatient. "Use your vessel, I gave him to you for a reason."

"As you wish, Father." the silhouette disappeared. Crota finished carving the last rune onto Doombringer, his sword. _Now, Warlock,_ he said to himself, _You shall witness the total annihilation of your world, with a single stroke._

* * *

Pahanin looked at the node on the far end of The Shattered Coast. "That one?" he asked the Stranger.

She answered, "Yes," and proceeded to work on the old computer, interlacing it with some of her own wires in her arm. Before Pahanin could say something, the Exo looked at him and said, "No, you can't help." He sat down, playing with his knife. When she was done, she told him, "Give me your Machine Gun."

"Why?"

"Because that Fireteam of Six is coming, I feel it across the time-streams."

Pahanin reluctantly obeyed, then was told to stand back as she fired up the console. Then she spoke. "You're interesting. Not entirely interesting, ..."

* * *

"...but you hold promise." As we traveled to the Moon via a mini-wormhole, all of us heard a mysterious voice from the console. "Who was that?" I asked Rusty.

"I have no idea."

The voice continued, "Max, I know who you are and what you will do, but I have no time to explain." She paused, then said, "You're brave, Warlock, going down to face the Hive in their fortress. But compared against the Vex, the Hive are just children."

I asked, "Who and Where are you?"

Another pause. "Go down and tear them up. If you live, come find me," and the voice disappeared.

"I've got some broken coordinates," said Rusty, "Sigma-2, North-Iota."

"The Ishtar Academy on Venus," Rasputin gasped, "It's overrun by the Vex!"

Feeling confused, I asked, "What are the Vex?"

"We'll talk about this later," replied Lilianna, "I've got a bad feeling about all of this."

* * *

The Stranger took the wires out of her left arm, and grabbed Pahanin's Machine Gun. She spoke with it telepathically, asking it questions about itself, Pahanin, and The Vault of Glass. She looked at Pahanin at one point, then went back to the weapon. Her final question was, "Where would you like to go?"

The weapon answered, "Mars. In a chest." The Stranger barely touched the weapon, and it instantly disappeared.

Pahanin was shocked. The Exo turned to him saying, "Now, I want you to go back to the City, and wait for the Fireteam of six."

"How will I know?"

"Your Ghost will. I told her everything about this Fireteam." Then there was a high-pitched screech. "Go now!"

Nightingale was concerned. "But you haven't told me yet."

The Stranger looked at her and said, "I have, but you will find me again." The screech was getting louder. "GO!" and Pahanin was gone, teleported to orbit. The Stranger also disappeared, as the House of Winter invaded the coast.

* * *

We touched down on the surface of the Moon, in the Ocean of Storms. In the Archer's Line, we set our Ghosts free to look for the cracks. Rasputin, Lilianna, and their Ghosts went to the Hellmouth via a pathway on the left side on his Sparrow, while I stayed here with Rusty as he searched for the cracks.

Archer's Line is just that, a long line fat enough to hold a Lunar Colony Accelerator built by China, which had three parts: a long metal tube built to withstand 5 Nuclear bombs, and two outposts that acted as stations for transferring, receiving, or colliding atomic and/or subatomic particles. As of the aftermath, excess antimatter are sucked down lesser tubes, which are led down to either one of the stations. The main tube is held up by 3 steel vertical trusses, each with 1.5 kilometers of space from one truss to the next one. The surface itself was anything but level (except on the left side): a small valley in the middle, a hill on the right side, and an incline leading to the left side, which holds the station to the accelerator. The station itself was a large, elongated, rounded off prism, with the top half sealed off from the ground, and used to store the antimatter. On the left and right sides, there are smaller outposts positioned underneath the accelerator, which are now mostly buried into the ground. Overall, this accelerator was divided into two, and what remains of the accelerator is held up by the remains of Archer's Line, everything else has crumbled away.

After two hours, they come back with a single word, "Nothing!" Rusty said the same thing. Then, we heard a loud growl shaking the whole lunar surface, and that's when I knew we were in trouble. I wanted to check the path that leads off to the right, so we hopped onto our Sparrows, and went to the Anchor of Light.

The Anchor was divided into two parts, each with an outpost occupied by the House of Exile. The left side, which was a small 'cul-de-sac' diverting from the right side, had no rocky border, but instead had a sudden drop into a poisonous green chasm. The left outpost teetered on this edge, and looked like it could topple any second. The right side, however, was the second path connecting Archer's Line to the Hellmouth, and had no chasms, an outpost half-buried in rock, a port for the Fallen on the first path to the right, and on the second right, near the buried outpost, a path into the Temple of Crota.

The area as a whole had patches of Fallen, most of which didn't notice us until we heard a Dreg scream, by that point, we just sped past them, and into the second sub-path. After a while, the path began to shrink, and we ditched our Sparrows. Upon reaching the large dark entrance to the Temple of Crota, we heard a similar growl from Archer's Line, but this time it was louder, and I could hear it whisper something. Through our headsets, Eris said, "Crota! The ritual has begun!" With that we delved into the Temple.

Crota's Temple was a long passage with twists and turns. The main hallway circled around a large Hive seeder, and it was mostly comprised of darkened Osmium and Hadium carving and boring into the Moon. The entrance was a big, circular staircase leading to the hallway beneath it, and on the other end of the Hallway was the main room, which held another seeder in the center of the large space, and had two pathways, both blocked by doors. The left one remained closed, while the right one opened for 6 Cursed Thrall, and 20 regular ones. I threw a Scatter Grenade at the Thrall, which disintegrated them. "Someone call pest control?" Ras asked. Another growl, this time it was ear-piercing. "They are waking his soul!" said Eris. "Hurry!" I shouted, and we ran across a bridge from the door, around a rocky wall, and down a staircase leading into the basement of the Temple.

Smaller in comparison to the Temple, the basement, which Eris dubbed "The World's Grave", it was mostly linear, with a few sets of stairs, one which led to their library, another led to a ritual room, and the rest were just placed for connecting to other platforms. The three of us powered through 10 waves of Cursed Thrall, stole their library, and took down three Wizards in the next room, who were guarding a shard of the Traveler, which we freed. More growling. Crota's voice said, "I WILL LIVE AGAIN!" The door opposite to our entrance opened into a dark passageway, and we passed through.

The passage was so dark, even our Ghosts' light couldn't brighten it up. "I WILL CRUSH THE EARTH!" shouted the voice. We took a left, and entered the first room. 15 Thrall screamed and ran towards us, with 5 Acolytes and 1 Knight in the background. Rasputin used the Husk to clear out the Thrall, while I knocked down the Acolytes and Knight with my scout rifle. After repeating the same process in next three rooms, we came upon the Chamber of Night. This Chamber only had one bridge over a moat, and in the center of this marrow covered room of hollowed out lunar rock, there was a giant crystal with three glowing green eyes. "CROTA!" shouted Eris, "THEY'RE WAKING HIM!" That's when they saw us.

The Knight said to a Wizard, "Lend me your strength, oh sister mine!" The Wizard, that looked nothing like the four Wakers surrounding the crystal, went to her brother, infused him with a red aura, and he charged at us with his cleaver. Rasputin used the Husk against him, but no avail. I focused on the Wizard, which I took down with 14 shots from my scout rifle. The Knight, upon seeing this was enraged, and slammed down his sword in my direction. Thrown against a wall, I fired two fusion shots at the Knight, temporarily crippling him. I glided to the ground, and then we turned our attention to the Wakers, killing all of them with kerosene-coated headshots. The Knight stood up, and ran over to Rasputin. Rasputin ran away from the cleaver, and the chase was on.

The crystal in the middle started to float. "I WILL HAVE VICTORY!" it shouted, and it started to launch large green projectiles at us. I tried to shoot it down, but the crystal deflected every shot. Rasputin then turned to face the Knight, and blew off his bone-dry head with a shotgun blast. Lilianna took the cleaver, handed it to me, and said, "This sword is the only weapon that can destroy that crystal." I took it hand, glided to the crystal's level, slashing at it with all my might, then I threw it at the Soulstone, implanting it, blade first. With one Nova Bomb directed at the sword, the void pulse pushed the sword in further, and then exploded, destroying the sword, and the Crystal in a mighty explosion. Crota screamed, "AUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" and I thought that our ears were shattered.

Eris's voice, which sounded like a whisper, gave us good news. "You have stopped the Hive from furthering their invasion and destruction. I thank you for giving me the gift of vengeance. And the City thanks you, even if they don't yet know it." I stared off into space, thinking about what I saw in the sword, but they pulled me back to reality. "Hey, Max!" I looked at them, "Yes?"

"Look at the Husk!" said Ras.

I noticed that the Husk was glowing green, and directed us to the corpse of the Knight. On top of the body was a glowing green orb, that was magically magnetized to the Husk. When it collided with the Husk, the bone-dry weapon transformed into a grey colored version of itself. Rusty and Rasputin's ghost analyzed it. "It...shouldn't be..." they searched for the right word, "possible." Rusty said, "It's new, yet old. It's a Hive weapon, that eats the Hive."

"An Eidolon Ally," said Lilianna.

Rasputin's ghost said, "We need to bring this back to the Speaker." As we teleported for orbit, I hoped that we wouldn't get into too much trouble.

* * *

Dredgen Yor ran into the Chamber of Night. He saw what had happened. The Soulstone was shattered, and Crota had retreated back into his netherworld. A silhouette appeared. "COME FORTH," it said. Dredgen immediately went to the floating silhouette, and bowed. "Father," Crota said through him, "I'm sorry. I underestimated the Warlock."

The silhouette looked upon the corrupted Hunter. "Underestimated? HE TORE UP YOUR TOP GENERALS AND YOUR PLANS TO DESTROY THE EARTH! YOU SHOULD'VE GONE DEEPER INTO YOUR FORTRESS!" It paused, then said, "Give me your gun." Dredgen handed over the weapon, and the silhouette disappeared with it.

Dredgen was called back to Crota's realm, where he saw the ghostly Hive Prince. Dredgen approached, "My lord," he gulped "What do we do now?" Crota said nothing at first, then shouted, "IR YUT!" The Deathsinger arrived. "What do you want, My lord?"

"Infuse our souls into the Oversoul, I want to kill that Warlock from the City!"


	11. The Prophecy

THE PROPHECY

Frigoris stood before his skiff. His second-in-command had just rallied the troops, and the House of Exile was ready to attack the Hellmouth. He remembered how there was no response from Sepiks Prime on Earth, and he knows that the Hive are weakened due to the Guardians. _They have weakened the Hive,_ he told himself, _Now we fly for their end!_ He held his shrapnel launcher, boarded his abnormally large skiff, and prepared to land his fleet upon the Hellmouth.

* * *

We came back to the Speaker. "We're back!" and we handed him the piece of the Traveler that we found in the Chamber of Night. "And, we managed to kill off Crota's generals as well."

"Then he is coming back!" The Speaker managed to keep his shock contained, but I knew it was there.

"Not anymore," said a familiar voice. We turned around to find Eris Morn, Crota's Bane, coming up the steps. "He was sent back into his realm. Max destroyed Crota's Soulstone."

"Thank you, Eris, for guiding these Guardians through the Chamber of Night." The Speaker bowed and said, "But, there is more to be done. Destroy the Shrine of Oryx on the Moon, and halt the Vex on Venus." With that, we left the office. Rasputin said, "Wait up, I want to give you guys something." He pulled out the rocket launcher and gave it to Lilianna, then he pulled out a machine gun and gave it to me. "These are for use against the Vex. You'll need everything you can muster against those guys."

"And you're going to the Hellmouth?" Lilianna asked.

"Well, someone has to destroy the Shrine."

"But you could die!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, and Exos can regenerate. I'll be fine. Besides," he pointed to his Ghost, "this guy can revive me if needed." With that, they left for the Hanger to get Leviathan's old ship, while Lilianna and I, alongside our Ghosts, were transported to Lilianna's ship.

On the ship, the Hunter navigated us to Venus. Rusty gave us the briefing. "Venus used to be a jungle once, and it was home to the Ishtar Collective. They were scientists who focused on developing cutting-edge tech, and some even went over the edge to develop the first Exo consciousness." While Rusty was talking, Lilianna said, "Max, I want to talk to you."

"Okay."

"Alone." She glared at Rusty, and he disappeared. I sat in the co-pilot's seat, and she said, "Max, you know that the Prophecy pertains to you, right?"

"I guess, but there are more Warlocks out there, and this prophecy-"

"He will rise after death as a Warlock, He will master the elements, He will destroy the Darkness, and all will bow to him." She sounded like she was enchanting spells.

"Now there's a prophecy that's way too literal," I joked.

She chuckled, "I guess so." As soon as she said that, we landed on Venus.

Venus in the Northern hemisphere is not entirely a jungle, but rather rocky with only one small section of a tropical rainforest. The skies were grey in the evening, and acidic green during the day, with the occasional blue streaks just barely above the skyline. The Ishtar Academy was in the center of everything, below it was the Shattered Coast, the Jungle was to Coast's right, and above the Jungle lay the Waking Ruins and the towering Vex Citadel, which looped to the Ember Caves, and back to the Coast. The Coast itself was crawling with Fallen from the House of Winter; the right side was claimed by the sea, and on the left was the Academy.

When we touched down in the Shattered Coast, 4 Fallen and 2 Shanks from the House of Winter opened fire on us, and we ran behind a rock for some cover. "They're organized!" I said.

"And skilled!" replied Lilianna.

"And dangerous!" blurted Rusty.

Both of us looked at him and said, "NO $%&#!" After that, Rusty never spoke to us for a while. Lilianna jumped out and shot down all 6 of them with her pulse rifle. We advanced along the Coast using our Sparrows, moving past a giant statue, and into a building with a control node inside, guarded by a Servator-led pack of Fallen Dregs and Vandals. Using our grenades, we dispatched all except for the Servator, which she destroyed with a Blink Strike. Then she pulled out her Ghost to examine and use the node to track the Vex. "Done!" said the Ghost, "Now we can track the Vex wherever they go."

"Nice work, Ghost!" said Lilianna.

That's when I asked the Ghost, "Do you have a name?"

"GH-847020859903875," replied the Ghost.

I pondered about names. "How about...Zelda?"

"No." Her voice was tough.

"Sapphire?"

"No," the Ghost paused, "How about Alex?"

"Then Alex it shall be."

Lilianna asked, "Why must you name every Ghost?"

"Because," I answered, as I pulled out my Sparrow, "I'd like to think of everyone as unique." I rushed off to the Academy and entered; Lilianna caught up to me a few seconds later.

Where we ended up, after navigating through a few tunnels, was an old library, about 3-stories tall, and it was well-organized. "Not even the Warlock libraries are this big," remarked the Hunter. I, on the other hand, was focused on the glowing white pillar standing before us. Alex floated over to examine it. "It's tethered to somewhere beyond Space-Time. Amazing!" But then it disappeared, a grey cloud filled the room, and a blue orb started pulsing in the center. "No no no no NO!" shouted Alex, "It's the Vex find some cover!" And we did just that.

The Vex. Ancient war machines, bred for two purposes: simulate and kill, on sight. They are literally battle-hardened, steel-armored, red-eyed, cybernetic mini-cyclops. Goblins have arcing heads, skinny metal bodies with joints and everything, milky-white substances contained inside their chests, and are equipped with rapid-firing slap rifles, slap grenades, and regular slaps if you get too close. Hobgoblins are like Goblins, except that they have heads with thin horizontal horns, and are equipped with their sniping line rifles. Harpies are triangular, floating drones with 3 angled plates and 3 slap rifles already equipped on itself. Minotaurs are huge, armored, bipedal "tanks", equipped with torch hammers that lob Void bombs, a Void shield, and an overall rounded off shape on every part. And don't get me started on Hydras. Hydras are floating, enlarged, metal spines with 2 rapid firing torch hammers, and to top it off, they have a rotating mesh shield that blocks every attack. In short, they are the epitome of danger.

The ten Goblins marched down the steps, closing in on our position. Then they started firing, and we fought back. Against their armor, our bullets couldn't do anything, and it wasn't until the Hunter landed a shot in one's eye that we saw their weakness. As soon as we shot their eyes, their chests opened up, exposing their cores, which I later learned was Radiolaria. Firing into one's Radiolaria apparently makes a Vex unit explode. So we repeated the process 9 times during the first round, 15 during the second (which included Goblins and Hobgoblins), and the third round. On the third round, a Minotaur was deployed, and he fired his torch hammer at both of us, swapping his gaze back and forth. I threw my scatter grenade at him, then blasted of his head with one well-placed eye-shot, but it never opened up it's Radiolaria. Instead, it charged at me, lobbing bombs every half-second, and I opened my palm at him, cracking his armor and revealing its core. I shot at it, demolishing the Minotaur. That's when two more appeared, alongside 20 Goblins and 5 Hobgoblins.

With the Goblins and Hobgoblins, we repeated the same process as before. But the Minotaurs were complicated. We kept running all over the place, waiting for the next grenade, until I realized that the machine gun had Void properties interlaced within the chamber. I used my new heavy weapon to mow down the Minotaurs, for its bullets could easily penetrate their armor. 5 more Minotaurs were deployed, and I diced all of them with a shattered Nova Bomb, while Lilianna finished them off with an RPG. We were exhausted. "Phew," I said, "And I was just starting to have a good workout."

"You'll have more of them," said a familiar voice. This voice was robotic, yet human. It held both emotion and analysis, anger and sadness, it was filled with oppositions and anomalies. The voice belonged to a cloaked female Exo. The Exo had light blue eyes, mouth, and circuitry. Her metallic skin was dingy blue, her jaw was white, and her cloak covered her upper body. Her only weapon was bright yellow, and it looked like a polygonal pulse rifle. I looked into her eyes, and I thought I recognized her name: "Stranger." "We don't have much time," said the Stranger.

"Who are you?" asked the Hunter.

"No time to explain," the Stranger was adamant with every word that she spoke.

I blurted, "What is this Prophesy?"

The Exo looked like she was waiting for- _No._ -expecting, this question. "'One will die by the hand of a Warlord, and He will rise after death as a Warlock. One will be tempered by the hand of magic, and He will master the elements. One will be tainted by monsters, and He will destroy the Darkness. One will run, and He will stand. One will be struck, and all will bow to Him. But one will rise to the challenge, and He will become it.' That is The Prophecy of Legend, that is the Fate of Six."

Everyone, even our Ghosts, were stunned. She continued, "Find the Black Garden, and rip out its heart. That is how it starts."

Lilianna asked, "Where is it?"

"Even I don't know. Some things are shrouded from Space-Time, no one can explain it," she paused, contemplating for what she was about to say next, "except for a Gate Lord."

"A G-g-g-gate L-l-l-lord?" Alex sounded nervous. Even Rusty looked nervous. Lilianna, even though she was shaken, managed to hide it well. I didn't know what a Gate Lord was, but I assumed it was dangerous. "What is a Gate Lord?"

The Stranger was about to answer, until she received a message on her internal comms. "Too late," she told us. Then she turned her attention to her comms. "How many?" A pause. "Hold positions, kill the engines, and don't let them find you." And she disappeared. The effects of her teleportation were water-like, splashes of energy rippling from her head down to her feet. "What now?" I asked. Rasputin teleported near us, and said, "Well, I'm glad that I found you guys. We need to move forward. The Fallen have gained a position in the Academy, and we're not going to lose the Archive to them."

"Great," I said. "Let's hope it doesn't get absolutely boring." But I looked at everyone else, and I knew that we have gone too deep.

* * *

Frigoris was laying on the ground, ether spilling from his body, his armor was crumpled, and he began to cough. He was ready to die. _I've lived a good life. I felt the cold kiss of death, and I have a successor._ His lieutenant ran to him. (Everything is going to be alright), said the Captain. Frigoris clutched his prosthetics and ripped them off. (No), he said, (This was meant to be.) The Captain didn't understand, and he hauled the Baron's body over to the Baron's Ketch. Frigoris's last words were, (Survive the against the Night! The Traveler betrayed us!)


	12. Warmind Limbo

WARMIND LIMBO

We screwed up the House of Winter at the Academy's Archives, then we messed around with the Vex and their Nexus Mind (which was a Hydra) in the Dig Site, and we even annihilated the Kell of Winter and their Archon Priest. As rewards, we found old journal pages belonging to Toland the Shattered. Rasputin even gave Lilianna a hand cannon from the Hellmouth, as sort of an apology for Leviathan's death.

After that, we found a Vex Cyclops just outside the Waking Ruins, took its mind core to a research station. The station, which was Campus 9, was full of fully-functional Golden Age tech. After examining the core, the Vex began to close in. First came the Harpies, then the Goblins, after that were Hobgoblins, and finally came the Minotaurs and Hydras. That's when we learned that a Gate Lord could be found and drawn out, but only if we screwed up the gate system. We progressed further, killing all of the Vex Gates leading up to a place called the Endless Steps. First, we had to descend down our set of stairs, loop around to the next set of stairs, and ascend those. It was there, on a relatively small platform, that we summoned a Gate Lord.

It came out in pieces, then it assembled itself, and pounded the ground with its feet. 3 stories tall, Minotaur shape and build, and very, very angry at us. It started shooting its torch hammer, and we ran away. Lilianna was firing her pulse rifle, but couldn't puncture its armor. In fact none of us could even dent or scratch it, even with our heavy weapons. Rasputin lifted himself on top of a pillar, and launched himself onto the Gate Lord using his Fist of Havoc, landing a dent on its chest. He fell to the ground. The Gate Lord tried to crush him with its foot, but the Warmind shouted, "NO!" raised his hand, palm facing the foot, and created a Void force-field big enough to house the three of us. The Giant crushed his own foot against the might of the Void shield, and stumbled back. I hurled a Nova bomb at the Gate Lord, cracking its metal armor, allowing for Lilianna to shred the rest of the plating with her Arc Blade, then used her Golden Gun to ignite its Radiolaria, and blow it up. Ras and the Hunter were exhausted after what they did. But something did pop out of the body of the giant: a Fusion Rifle with Warmind designs, and the Gate Lord's eye.

We approached the downed Gate Lord. I handled the new Fusion Rifle and Rasputin examined it. "That's my Pocket Infinity! It must've learned about the Gate System while it was lost in it."

"And why does this matter?"

"Because of the Vault of Glass." The Warmind turned his attention to the Eye. "Strange, it's whispering something." I looked at Lilianna, but her face said the same thing: _I don't hear anything._ Rasputin picked up and held the Eye. He pressed it close to his "ear", then it glowed an ominous red. Ras began to scream, "HEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLP MMMMMMEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" Then he fell to his knees, and fainted.

The Hunter asked, "Can you bring him back?"

"I can try." I placed a hand on his head, and closed my eyes.

I could see everything. The Warmind had untold secrets inside his head, waiting to burst out. His mind was similar to that of the Earth: evolving memories as people, wide and expansive storage represented as countries, folders as houses, circuitry were roads, undiscovered parts as forests, and successes were the mountains. I found Ras on one of the roads, looking at the Eye with intrigue. "Max?" he asked, without turning his head. "Ras, come back to us."

"I can't, it is amazing!"

"Please, we're worried about you."

"Even Lilianna?"

"Even the Hunter."

He turned around. "I must learn about the Vex. I penetrated their firewall, broke into their Citadel, and rescued 227 simulations of four Ishtar Scientists. The same sims wanted to go back as explorers, and I went with them. I found new labyrinths in the Vex Gate System, yet I was never able to procure a specimen for studying. Knowledge is power."

"Then let me help." I took the Eye, and heard it say "84 North, 32 East, Meridian Bay," over and over again. "Let's go, Ras!" And we exited out of Rasputin's Limbo.

Lilianna greeted us with an "About time!" and "Where the Hellmouth were you guys!?"

I responded with a "Warmind Limbo," and "Where is Meridian Bay?"

At first, no one answered. Then Rusty broke his silence by saying, "Mars, territory of the Cabal. And no one can get past their Exclusion Zone."

"Well then," said the Hunter, "Let's go break it down!"

* * *

Primus Sha'aull stood at the Vex Confluence. It was his victory, and he wasn't going to give it up easily. He built a large fortress around his prize, and doubled the guard at the surrounding checkpoints. He himself, Sha'aull, kept a close eye on it, and even though he told everyone that it's for sustaining the power supply, the Primus had ulterior motives surrounding the various Vex relic sites. He wanted to invade the Black Garden, he wanted to consume the Dark Heart, he wanted to become The Darkness.


	13. War Zones

WAR ZONES

We touched down on the surface of Mars, far enough so that the Cabal wouldn't see us. The planet itself was a red desert, with small rocks, cliffs, and plateaus peeking through every once in awhile. Ruins of an ancient city stood miles away from us, while a Cabal bunker was lying only a few meters to our right. The area that we landed in, which was called the Barrens, had two levels: the top layer, which is where we were, and the bottom layer, connected by two sand inclines, and separated by a cliff. From the left of the bottom, a wrecked tunnel provided a passage to the lost city, and from the top layer, was a valley that led to the Scablands.

Rusty told us, "The Cabal have a lock on our orbital comms, which means we have no way of going back to our ship, summoning our Sparrows, or even contacting the Vanguard."

"So," I said, "We'll break into one of their bunkers, disable their systems, and head over to the Black Garden."

Rasputin shook his head. "Have you ever tried breaking into a Cabal mainframe? It is covered, coated, even bathed in firewalls. No one can get past it."

"Not even you?" The Hunter was skeptical. Even I was. "Warminds are the most brilliant beings in the universe."

"Yeah," said the Warmind, "but only because we're unpredictable. When it comes to hacking into mainframes, even my kin has their limits." He paused. "Not to mention that they are heavily militarized." No one made a sound. Then Rasputin said, "Which is why I have developed special bullets made out of Vex armor to penetrate Cabal plates, while you guys were driving, I took the liberty of arming your weapons with this ammo, and replaced the traditional barrels with those that are made of the same armor."

"Great," I said, "another arms dealer."

"Except that I'm not crazy like Banshee."

Lilianna was impatient. "If you two are done, we have a bunker to infiltrate." With that, we ran towards the "back door" located in the front.

The Cabal build outposts out of a mixture of the plainest and most common alloys in the Universe. When mixed correctly, and under specific conditions, the new metal is strong enough to withstand 7 Hydrogen bombs. The outposts are plain and simple: large spaces for soldiers, equipment, and tanks. Their Firebases, on the other hand, are so huge that it takes up a square Megameter just for the stockpiles, and the other 999 to store equipment, tanks, dropships, and their troops. Within their forts, there are checkpoints at every gate, all run by computer. The only way to get past them is to have a keycard. By comparison, we were lucky to infiltrate an outpost.

After breaking in and walking through a tunnel, we took a right and arrived in a large room with one terminal about 30 degrees to the left. Since both ends were sealed off, this was the only computer we could access. "Now," I whispered, "Who's going to hack?"

"It's too difficult," whispered the Warmind.

"And we'll get caught!" added Rusty.

"Altogether, it's suicidal!" concluded Alex.

Rasputin's ghost chimed in, "Then we do it together."

"No guarantees of survival?" asked Rasputin.

"We're Guardians!" I said, "We defy the odds."

Reluctantly, Rusty and Alex floated over to the terminal, while Rasputin and his Ghost followed. Ras began typing, while the three Ghosts scans every line of code. Everything was going well, up until Rasputin shouted, "SON OF A -! IT JUST ASKED FOR AN ACCESS KEY!" And the alarms blared. "RASPUTIN! YOU JUST TRIGGERED A FAIL-SAFE!" shouted his Ghost. Then came the Cabal.

800 pounds, 7 feet tall, hulking frames, decked out on weapons and armor with jet packs, the Cabal blew up planets and moons just for getting in their way, if they were worthless. A typical Cabal footsoldier is the Legionary, equipped with a traditional Slug Rifle. The Phalanx is like the Legionary, except that they have shields that take an infinite amount of punishment. Centurions are equipped with Projection Rifles that lob mini missiles, and have a solar shield as defense. Colossi are heavy hitters with heavy armor, their weapon of choice is a Heavy Slug Rifle, capable of firing 120 shots per minute. The only exceptions to the description are the Psions: small, hyper-intelligent, wields Slug Rifles, and capable of throwing you into a wall with their minds.

20 Legionaries, 10 Phalanxes, and 5 Centurions hopped out of a dropship. The Hunter threw her Flux grenade at the cluster, and killed the soldiers, leaving 4 Centurions breathing fresh air. Rasputin finished them with the Eidolon Ally. Another ship, dropping twice as much as before. "Man," I said, "no wonder you guys were afraid of Mars. These guys just won't quit!"

"But neither will we!" said Lilianna, and she charged at the Cabal with her Arc Blade. After slicing and dicing her foes into 'mincemeat', another Cabal dropship came, carrying 4 times the amount of the first ship, and I blew all of them with one Nova Bomb. Rasputin tore apart a Centurion's armor for a keycard, until he found one, and stuck it into the terminal. The alarms died. The Exclusion Zone was overridden. "Alright! Let's go!" We pulled out our Sparrows, and raced each other through the valley, past the Scablands, and into Giant's Pass. It was there that we survived an onslaught of Cabal, and summoned their Bracus.

The Dropship came in and dropped 40 Psions and the Bracus, and left. The Psions, given their mental abilities, proved to be a greater challenge than we thought. We fired upon some of them, but they kept projecting their psionic blasts against us. "Ok," Ras said, "Plan B?"

The Hunter shot down 10 Psions with her Pulse Rifle, another 10 with her new Void-infused Sniper, and placed 3 Golden shots into the Bracus. Then she took the keycard, pointed to the dead Bracus, said, "That is Plan B!" and she rode off in her Sparrow. We followed her lead.

Valley of the Kings was enormous compared to the Barrens or Scablands. On the left was a large Vex gate shaped like a ring, backed by nothing at all, on the right was a Cabal watchtower, standing against a big alcove in the rock, and straight ahead led to a Cabal tank, parked into the rock. We used the security card to access that tower's database, and learned that the Gate is locked by a confluence trapped in Firebase Rubicon, commanded by Primus Sha'aull, and overseen by Valus Ta'aurc, whose tank wasn't far at all. We payed him a visit.

On the inside, the tank could hold 2 battalions, but was mostly filled with tunnels. The only two rooms on the tank were the sleeping quarters for the soldiers, and the other was the Valus's office and bedroom. We powered through the Legionaries and Centurions, and reached the Valus's room. The Valus was a huge Colossus, wearing the Siege dancer banners on a 'T' shaped rod strapped to his back. He greeted us with a Heavy Slug Rifle and a volley of missiles. We immediately took cover. But he wouldn't stop firing. That's when the Warmind slammed down his Fist of Havoc, causing a rippling shockwave that hit Ta'aurc, and dented his back armor. The Legionaries came out of nowhere, and we decided to throw everything we had on the Valus.

We threw grenades, punctured his armor, and used our supers against this guy. I casted a Nova Bomb at him, and it burnt a hole into his armor. I used the Fusion Rifle, and weakened him; Rasputin used his Void Ward of Dawn to enhance our light, and Lilianna duel wielded an Arc Blade in her left hand, and a Golden Gun in her right. She charged at the Legionaries with her blade, double-jumped fired one shot, lept at the other soldiers, killing them, and fired two more shots at the Valus: one in the heart, and one in the head. The Valus growled and screamed after the first shot, he clutched his chest after the second, and was dead by the third.

I looked at Lilianna, and I knew that she was unconquerable. Alone, she can take on massive armies. Alone, she could stand up against the Darkness, and survive. I looked at myself. _Together, we could destroy the Dark Heart. Together, we might raid the Vault of Glass._

* * *

Atheon stared at himself. His Glass Throne that was made of mirrors, his inner sanctum that is the needle of time, he felt everything in existence, yet something was missing. _The Warlock! The one who sent Crota back to the Ascendant Realm. He is coming._ Atheon paused to collect his thoughts. _Time is my ally. I have nothing to fear._

The Templar approached him. "Atheon, we are ready for the final project," he said in the language of the Vex.

Atheon replied, "Good! Tell our master that his work can finally begin." _Now, let's see how The City fares against Time itself._


	14. The Surge

THE SURGE

We decided to split up. Rasputin went to Freehold via the tunnel in the Barrens, Lilianna went down to a transit station via a path from the Scablands, and I went to the Vex Confluence, deep within Firebase Rubicon.

* * *

Lilianna sped off in her Sparrow, down to the Transit. What she got from a Vex Conflux was the location of the Vex surge at the Epicenter, somewhere dark and deep, somewhere hidden from the eyes of the Cabal, but close enough to the Black Garden. She traveled down a large tunnel, and ended up in one section of Freehold.

This Section had an entrance to the transit in the exact center, which continued down to the left. Surrounding it were Golden-age office blocks, towering to at least 6 stories. On the right was a pathway that led back to the Hollow, the same place that Rasputin was conducting his personal mission. The pathway was 30 degrees to the right, at 60 there is another building that separated the entirety of a drop-off, and at 90 there is short path that leads to nowhere. The area itself had patches of Vex, most of which the Hunter was able to dodge and avoid. However, the waiting room and the station itself were pitch-black, crawling with Vex Goblins.

The Hunter used Alex as a flashlight to navigate the waiting room. Dozens of red-eyes staring in different directions, then focused on her. She raised her Pulse Rifle, and fired at each eye, Vex responded by shooting back. After killing 8 Goblins, she ran off to the next room, firing at the Vex from the first room as cover, then killing some more in the next room. When she saw the Cyclops, she dodged to avoid its Void 'eye bolt'. Unlike other Vex, the Cyclops is mostly stationary, with the exception that it rotates itself on the XY plane. It has octahedral head, with two diagonal horns on either side, and is attached to a circular ring on the bottom. The Hunter sniped the eye of the Cyclops, and some of the Hobgoblins as well, leaving them headless, and the Cyclops beserk. She fired a Rocket, and ended the android turret. _See?_ she said to herself, _I can do this alone._ Lilianna ran through the next tunnel.

The Hunter progressed through the tiled tunnel, and to the tracks. The stopping point for the tracks lay several kilometers ahead, and on the tracks themselves were 7 trains in total. Goblins and Harpies flooded the tracks, while the Hobgoblins took to the trains. The Hunter found the first gate in a string of five, and destroyed it. Using her pulse rifle, she finished off 10 Goblins in the first section, killed 15 Harpies guarding the next gate (which she also destroyed), and sniped each of the Hobgoblins as she went. The final room consisted of the remaining 3 Vex Gates arranged in a circle: one was inside a smaller room with two doorways that is off to the right, another one was hiding behind a train on the left, the last one was straight ahead and clearly visible, all of them were guarded by a single Minotaur in the center of the room, standing next to another Conflux, similar to the one on Venus. The Minotaur stood, rotated its arm, then turned to face the Hunter.

Lilianna stood still, then sniped the gate on the left, and ran at the last second to get away from the Minotaur's fist. She double-jumped onto a train, Goblins were starting to target her, and she blasted the middle gate. The Goblins retaliated, they fired on the Hunter, and she electrified her blade. She jumped down, tore through the Goblins, and the right side gate. The Minotaur closed in, firing its Torch Hammer every second it marched closer to the Hunter. Lilianna threw her Flux grenade at it, disabling its shield, then began poking holes in its armor with her pulse rifle. Minotaur fires Torch, Hunter evades every shot, pulls out her Golden Gun, and fires one shot into its head, another into its body, melting a brass plate, and the last into its Radiolaria, igniting it, and destroying the Minotaur. The remaining Vex retreated.

Alex floated over to the Conflux, and scanned it. She was shocked. "What is it?" asked Lilianna.

"This surge isn't an invasion," reported Alex.

"What?"

"These Vex are returning home! They're being called back to the Black Garden!"

At that moment, I contacted her on the comms, "Lilianna!?"

She answered immediately, "Yes, Max?"

"I need help dealing with the Primus!"

"Where are you?"

"Firebase Rubicon!"

The Hunter froze. _He just walked into a Cabal Firebase!? How?_ She turned to Alex, "Do you have his coordinates?"

"Yes."

"Then send us there." And the Hunter was dropped in the middle of a war zone.

* * *

Rasputin looted a chest in the ancient Clovis Bray building in Freehold. Inside was a red and white Machine Gun, equipped with a smart tracker, one that cannot fire unless an enemy is in front of it. Ras picked it up, and then it said, "OI! Wash your hands before you handle me!"

The Warmind was stunned. "You can talk?"

"How about that? A Warmind that HASN'T seen it all!" The weapon had a Scottish accent.

"Yeah, well, I'm the first!"

"Oh, excuse me, your excellence, but Charlemagne ain't waiting for the Apocalypse to pass!"

Rasputin had shock and awe flowing in his electrodes. "Charlemagne? My old friend?"

"Well, yeah! I've been waiting for years to meet my kin!"

"Some welcome," muttered Ras.

"But it ain't safe here. I got out before the Psion Flayers could seize me from my Cortex, rescued by a Hunter, then dropped back here by some Exo Stranger." A Cabal Legionary passed the room where the Warminds were conversating. Charlemagne whispered, "The Flayers are still here, and you aren't powerful enough to face them alone."

"Then when can I avenge your Cortex."

I said, "Later. I need help!"

"Let me guess, Primus guarding Confluence in Firebase, and you simply walked in?"

"Yep."

"Then let's go!" shouted Charlemagne, and off they went.


	15. War Declarations

WAR DECLARATIONS

When we split up, I ran straight for Firebase Rubicon. I ran through a small valley, fought through the Cabal ranks in the entrance, and simply walked into the base itself.

The outer mantle of the base was mostly barren, with only an outpost straight ahead, beside that is an archway with a rock tunnel leading to the Iron Line, to my right is a transceiver tower, and behind that is a giant closed door.

I ran straight through a small, rocky passageway to the transceiver, killing 3 Psions and 10 Legionaries that surrounded it. The Colossus was tricky because he had a Heavy Slug Rifle that fired rapidly AND couldn't run out of ammunition. Luckily, I had my scatter grenade, so I threw that to stun the giant, and used my new Hand Cannon to blast its helmet off. I ran to the transceiver, and Rusty hacked it. "Where is it?" he said, "It's in the heart of the base, past the Iron Line," and then the Alarm blared.

"Well, NOW they know we're here!" I shouted, "Let's go!" I summoned the Sparrow, and sped toward the archway, past the second Colossus, and through the tunnels to the Iron Line.

The Iron Line was a massive space carved inside the mountain, filled with iron doors, floors, stairs, and low walls. Going to the left from the center, the Line extended out and reached through an iron tunnel to a Cabal outpost that lies in a valley. On the right is a circular door that is closed for the time being. Straight ahead is a trapezoidal door, locked from the inside.

I step on the iron floor in the center, and three Legionaries propulsed themselves up and over to where I stood. They fired their slug rifles, singeing my robes. I glided over to a rock for cover, and fired 3 shots from my hand cannon, popping off their helmets and leave them suffocating. Behind me, another door opened, and out came 5 Legionaries, 3 Phalanxes, and one Centurion. I reloaded, killed the Legionaries with headshots, shot the right arms of the Phalanxes, dropping their shields, then I went in for the kill, draining one and expelling the others with my melee. The Centurion locked onto me, I destroyed its shield with my Fusion Rifle, and killed it with a headshot.

The right door opened, paving the way for the Colossus and its 10 Legionaries and 15 Psions. I killed 10 Psions with my melee, and the rest with the hand cannon. The Legionaries started firing their slugs, and I was constantly running away from each molten bullet, while I switched to my Scout Rifle, and pricked off the soldiers one at a time. The Colossus was spraying heavy slug bullets wherever I walked. I ran for cover, took out my sniper, and aimed for his head. The Colossus fired, and shattered the scope. I ducked just in time, equipped the Scout, and shot at its head. The Colossus fired its shoulder rockets, I ran to avoid them, and moved closer to the beast. Using the Hand Cannon, I shot the helmet off, and the Colossus choked itself to death.

Rusty already made a break for the door, and he tried to hack it open. "It won't budge!" he said, "The Confluence is in the heart of the base..."

"... and we can't get to it if this door blocks our way," I finished. "There must be a crowbar around here somewhere." I searched, until I came back to the door. "Nothing at all."

"You're a Warlock, can't you manipulate the locks?"

"Some things are beyond my powers."

"Turning locks are easy."

"Yeah, if you're from Hogwarts."

"What?"

"Rusty, what if I told you that before the Golden Age and Collapse, there was a period where theaters and TV channels were filled with novel and comic book heros, and that there was hope, even if it was too small for anyone to see it," I offered.

My ghost rejected it when he said, "I'd say you're crazy. That time isn't recorded in my memory."

"But Rasputin is proof of that previous time. You've heard him."

"Yeah, but that time was greedy. It stole from many, and the Traveler corrected the world. That's why the Traveler came, to offer another way."

"And you believe that? I wanted to change the world for the better..."

"...but you died," Rusty finished.

I was getting tired of this. "Alright, can you just open the door, please?"

Rusty said, "I told you, I can't."

I approached the lock, and pressed my hand against it. I felt the constant turning of the tumblers, and matched the synchronicity of each one. I sped up some while I slowed down others, and the rest were left the way they were. The tumblers locked into place, the door was unlocked, and it opened up for us. 3 Phalanxes were waiting for us in the next giant room, but they were easily disposed of after I tossed my Scatter Grenade. "Let's go, Rusty!" We climbed the ramps that led to another circular door, and we went through another tunnel, straight to the heart of Firebase Rubicon.

The Confluence was a giant rectangular stone spire, sitting in the middle of the Firebase that is mostly metal and rock. It is surrounded by a circular door to its right, a giant valley behind it, a concave cliff and the control panel in front of it, and to its right is a sudden drop followed by a bridge coming from a backwards L-shaped platform, that is connected to a long room with an open side to the platform, the same room that I was entering.

Immediately, I jumped up to the L-platform, and proceeded to the bridge. As I climbed the first ramp onto the bridge, 3 Legionaries propulsed themselves up and over, closing in on me. I fired my hand cannon, and destroyed their helmets and burnt holes into their skulls. The Psions came down the right lane, so I jumped up, killed one with a headshot, 3 with body shots, and 2 more with my melee. 3 Phalanxes marched down the steps, the Colossus stood his ground at the top of the bridge, pulling the trigger on its heavy slug rifle, and firing rockets. I maneuvered myself to aim the missiles toward the Phalanxes, burning them alive. Then, I unleashed my machine gun on the Colossus, piercing the thick armor and skin.

I traveled up the rocky incline to the Confluence, killing 10 Psions, 5 Phalanxes, and 2 Centurions as I marched towards the Vex Panel to the Confluence. When I approached it and put the Gate Lord's eye into the socket, the Spire roared to life, shooting a beam into the eye, and breaking itself apart. In the center was a glass prism. "The Key to the Garden!" exclaimed Rusty, "Let's go!" The key disappeared, and a Primus jumped out of the circular door, firing its projection rifle. I switched to my Scout Rifle, and opened fire. The bullets just bounced off of its armor, but that didn't mean it wasn't pissed. I ran for cover and called for backup.

When I did, Lilianna apparated first, and then Rasputin. "Alright then!" she shouted, "Let's kill a Primus." The Hunter threw her grenades at the beast, Rasputin fired his new machine gun, and I launched a Nova Bomb. Alone, I couldn't make a scratch, but together, we cracked his armor and found multiple weak spots. The soldiers came out, firing their mini-missiles at us. "SCATTER!" I shouted, and we separated. Lilianna took out her Arc Blade and Golden Gun, diced her way through the soldiers, then fired 3 well-placed shots in between the cracks of armor, burning the Primus's skin and forcing him to drop his armor at the same time. "OPEN FIRE!" The Hunter and I fired our scout and pulse rifles on the Primus, while Rasputin jumped in the air and said, "HULK SMASH!" He struck down the Primus with his Fist of Havoc, and the Cabal leader was crushed. I grabbed the eye, then Rusty said, "It's time to enter the Black Garden, and halt the surge!"

* * *

Primus Sha'aull was flattened. He felt failure, defeat, humiliation. _We are supposed to be victorious, WE ARE THE CABAL!_ He crawled over to the spire, and pressed his hand against it. A shadowy image emanated from the spire. It said, "Primus, you failed to stop the Guardians from reviving the Traveler!"

"I know. Tell the Undying Mind to arm the statues, oh Lord of Darkness mine."


	16. The Garden of Death

THE GARDEN OF DEATH

Jessica wandered in the Tower. She waited for a sign, anything that could tell her if her sister was still alive. As a Warlock, she was forbidden by a strict set of rules, most of which were concerned with emotions. Her brown robes were centimeters away from touching the polished cobblestone of the balcony. In the night, the Traveler appeared to hang low, compared to the day where it would rise up. But this time it hung lower than before. "Interesting, isn't it?"

Jessica turned around to find a light-blue Exo, her voice analytical, yet confused. "Where did you come from?"

"No time to explain." The Stranger moved closer to Jess. "Your sister is safe, she's with the Warlock."

Jess looked at the Stranger. "The Warlock of Legend, no doubt." She turned her head to the Traveler. "Why come to me?"

The Stranger walked close to the railing. "Because he needs you..."

Jess scoffed, "Everyone needs my help these days."

"...for raiding the Vault of Glass."

Jess didn't reveal her shock, but intriguingly said, "I'm listening."

* * *

We ran out of the Firebase and into the Scablands, which was now silent because the Cabal retreated into their base. The sun loomed low, and the sky was red; the day started turning into night. We summoned our Sparrows, and were ready to race over to the Valley of the Kings, when we saw 3 Cabal ships soar in that direction. Charlemagne piped up, "They're off to the Black Garden. They will destroy it."

I was shocked. "The machine gun talks!?"

"Well yeah, the machine gun talks!" shouted Charlemagne, "I am Charlemagne, Warmind of Mars, and if we don't stop those ships, they will destroy this planet!"

"How do we stop them?" Lilianna was ready to unleash the calvary.

"The Ships are controlled by 3 Psion Flayers: Vatch, Kolar, and Numoc. Take them out, and the ships will stop."

"But the Cabal could be at the Garden by the time we reach the Flayers. We need to reach the Black Garden!" I said.

"You'll be fighting two enemies while you reach the Heart."

"If this is about your greedy mission, I am not falling for it," and I went into the direction of the Valley. Lilianna did the same. Rasputin stood still and argued with Charlemagne. Then, there was a voice on the intercom. "No time to lose, Guardians." It was the Stranger. "Destroy the dark heart!" All 3 of us raced into the Valley of the Kings.

The ships were standing outside of the giant metal ring, guarded by 3 Hobgoblins, 2 Minotaurs, and one Hydra. The Hydra fired its torch hammer at the ships. One exploded in mid-air, another dropped and blew up on the ground, and the last one retaliated. We managed to avoid the shrapnel of the first two ships, the Hydra and Minotaurs weren't so lucky, leaving the Hobs to deal with the ship. Lilianna aimed at the cockpit with her sniper, landed one shot, and the ship fell through the empty ring and into the abyss below. The Hobs their attention to us, but Lilianna threw her Arcbolt Grenade and killed the Vex snipers. The gate opened up in the middle of the ring, we jumped through, and we landed in a stone room with only one exit. The gate closed behind us. "Not going back the way we came in," Ras remarked, "Let's move!"

We passed through a rectangular hallway with stone statues of Goblins, all of them dormant. "I've seen this before in Age of Steel, Cybermen just waiting for the trumpet blast." I remembered When we reached the third section with statues, a few of them started moving, staring at us, arming their slap rifles. "RUN!" I shouted, and we sprinted through the masses of Vex Goblins and Minotaurs, weaving through the hallway, trying to avoid their bullets, before reaching a staircase that overlooks the Black Garden.

The Black Garden, rich with life, perfectly carved stone everywhere, the atmosphere was fresh and full of oxygen, and at the same time, it had a dark heart. Rusty's only comment was, "The heart is right in the center of it. We need to move."

"Can't you just enjoy the scenery for once?" Lilianna asked Rusty.

"No."

"Rusty," I said, "You're too analytical, and you need to loosen up at some point."

"Why?"

Charlemagne butted in with, "Because you're dull, that's why."

"I'll do what I need to survive."

"Survive!? We're going to assault a Garden for survival!? I call it an attack!"

"It's better than your idea."

"Well, just look around, what do you see?"

Rusty looked at the horizon for a while before he said, "A place of Darkness."

"And that is all you'll ever see. No colors, no vibrance, no relaxation, just black and white, Light and Darkness, stuff to 'protect' and stuff to kill! Have you ever opened your eyes, or will you always be color-blind!?"

Rusty turned on Charlemagne. "HAVE YOU EVER WALKED ON TWO LEGS, MOVED AROUND WITHOUT YOUR GUARDIAN!?"

"HAVE YOU!?" Rusty and Charlemagne were loud enough to attract the attention of the Cyclops guarding the next hallway. The Hobs focused on us, and the Goblins started marching up the steps.

I shouted, "Ras, Charlie, take care of any Vex that follow us."

"Aye sir!" said the Warmind.

"My name's not CHARLIE!" shouted the other Warmind.

"It's either that or Fred." I turned back to the Hunter, "Lilianna, you're with me. We need to pave our way through the Vex."

A Hob to the left started sniping, I shot off its head, and then sent bullets through its chest. The Hunter kept her eyes on the Cyclops, using her sniper to break its eye. Rasputin fired rounds from his Auto Rifle and Charlemagne to ward off the Goblins and Minotaurs. I aimed at another Hobgoblin, fired twice, and took its life. Lilianna shattered the Cyclops' eye, driving it insane, then finished it off with a Rocket, sending it into pieces. Rasputin ran to us after throwing a pulse grenade at the masses of Vex. Excited, The Hunter shouted, "LET'S MOVE!" and we charged through the hallway and into the next room.

A Hydra and 10 Hobs were patrolling the next room. The Hydra turned to us, hissed, and fired. We ran in scattered directions, avoiding the void bombs and line rifle shots. The Hunter aimed the pulse rifle at each of the Hobs, and pulled the trigger. Ras threw a Magnetic Grenade at the Hydra, shattering it's lens, then ran close and fired 4 rounds from his shotgun, destroying the Hydra's weapons. It started to glow orange as it was detonating. "RUN AWAY!" Rasputin turned his tail and ran. The Hydra exploded, shrapnel flew everywhere, we ducked behind a couple of pillars. I asked, "Everyone alright?"

"Yep," from Lilianna.

"If I wasn't, then why am I still speaking?" shouted Charlemagne.

Rasputin, however, was stabbed in his left lung. He clutched his chest, dropped his kin, limped down a couple stairs moaning and groaning, before he passed out and fell down.

"RAS!" I ran to him, Lilianna followed. "Help me get him to a flat surface! Lift his legs, I'll grab the shoulders, and we lift on 3." The other Warmind had no other option but to watch. "One," I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, "Two," The Hunter grabbed his feet, and prepared to lift. "THREE!" We lifted the heavy Exo Warmind, and carefully laid him on a flat surface, face down and turned to one side. A chunk of brass was lodged into his platinum lung. How the Vex armor tore through Rasputin's Plasteel plate and his iron skin, I did not know. The platinum was broken and bent in 3 directions, and Ras's heart looked like it was dented. "It's going to be a mess to repair him, but we can still do it."

"If we had time," said Rusty.

I turned to my Ghost. "What do you mean?"

"Vex are flooding Mars and Venus, we need to destroy the Dark Heart."

"We need to repair our friend," I protested

"The Traveler is dying."

I tended to the dying Warmind, running everywhere, trying to find any pieces from the dead Vex to make another lung. "How much life is left?" I asked Rusty.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You're connected to the Traveler, you know how much life is left, so tell me."

Rusty was stunned, "How-"

"You can read my mind, but telepathy is a two-way street. I know that you were born the moment the Traveler fell silent, I know that you would give your life to your creator, and I know that you have a plan on enticing us to go down there and destroy a god, just so that yours can live. So tell me," I looked into Rusty's eye, "Is this plan on universal domination of faith yours, or is it the Traveler's?"

Rusty didn't speak. He floated over to Ras and fired a blue laser beam through his heart.

Sorrow washed over me. "WHAT DID YOU DO?"

The Ghost was analytical. "He was clearly a distraction, useless." I grabbed Rusty, and began to squeeze. "Stop," he croaked, "You're *cough* killing me!"

"YOU KILLED MY FRIEND! YOU SAW HIM AS NOTHING MORE THAN AN AUXILIARY PIECE OF YOUR PLAN! YOU CARE ABOUT **NO ONE!** " I was engulfed with flames, rage burned within me, and I crushed him. His eye was shattered, and his body, scattered. That's when I found his Mote of Light. I grabbed it, examined it, and realized that this could revive Rasputin. _But what good would that do? Taking a life to save a friend? If so, are you a monster?_ I pondered about it, then jammed the Mote in between his heart and lung, pulled out the shrapnel, and replaced the plasteel plate.

Rasputin woke up. "What happened?" He started to raise himself higher. "Why is there a dead Ghost?" He looked at it. "Why is it crushed?"

Nobody spoke.

"Max?"

I bit my lip, and hoped he couldn't see through the helmet.

"Rusty is usually floating around you, so where is he?"

I tried to sound confident. "I stuffed him in my pocket."

"Max," The Warmind was monotone serious, "Is this Rusty?"

Charlemagne stepped in. "No, of course not, this isn't Rusty. Well, maybe he was, but he was stolen in front of our eyes, then replaced with this scrap of metal lying on the floor. Now, we need to deal with this Dark Heart. Are you with me?"

Rasputin said, "Да!"

The Hunter was a little glad, "Yes!"

I followed with, "Yes, sir!"

"Good," said the Martian. When Ras was out of earshot and busy dealing with the Vex, Charlemagne talked to both of us. "Max, Lily,"

"My name's not Lily!" she shouted.

"Shhh!" he continued, "Rasputin is the first Warmind, which also means that he is almost like a child. He's looking for the truth, whatever it is, and he won't stop until he finds it. I don't know what will happen when he does, but it's not going to be pleasant."

"Which means we need to lie to him?"

"I'm afraid so. He is built on a strict moral code created by Max's friend, and it has no remorse for anyone who breaks it; even friends aren't immune."

"So, if I want to remain alive, I'll need to keep him in the dark."

Charlemagne nodded and said, "Him, and the whole City. This conversation only exists between the three of us."

I remembered the last line of the prophecy: _But one will rise to the challenge, and he will become it. Is it Rasputin, or me?_ Rasputin returned and said, "Come on, we have work to do." He picked up his kin, and led us down another set of stairs, through a passageway, and to the next room.

Rasputin was dicing up Goblins, I raced to the first node, placed my hand on it, and started to create a spire in the middle of the room. The Hunter ran to the other side, killing Vex wherever she walked, and even destroyed the Hydra that floated near the spire's base. She scanned the second one with her Ghost. I pulled out the Gate Lord's Eye and it summoned the Glass Key. The key separated into random parts, floated in front of the Eye, which levitated into the spire's laser. The laser was focused, fractured into the glass pieces, and focused on the center of the door. It budged, then moved back, and opened up. "Well," said the Titan Warmind, "Here goes nothing!" And we rushed inside.

The room and metal altar were semicircular, with 30 Goblins down on their knees, arms outstretched. The whole room had an orange hue, and in the altar was a floating, oscillating, dark orb. To the left and to the right were raised platforms with ramps. In front of those platforms were stone statues, one on the left, one on the right, and one in the middle, each with distinctive heads. As we stepped closer to the heart, It spoke in a very deep, yet coaxing, voice. "Ah, so nice of you to join us, Max Prodigy." The Goblins opened their eyes, rested their arms, and rotated their bodies toward us. "We have waited for this day. My children will make sure that your life sentence in their world is eternal." The Vex stood, straightened their bodies, armed their rifles, fixated on us, and opened fire.


	17. Burning Up

BURNING UP

Rasputin instantly jumped down, and charged on the Goblins, prefering his Auto Rifle to spray the bullets across the Vex. Lilianna aimed her sniper rifle at a Hobgoblin, and fired through its eye. I gilded down to the right, and electrocuted the Hob with the Fusion Rifle, then did the same thing on the left. More Vex Goblins teleported to the scene, this time accompanied by 5 Minotaurs. Lilianna shot through the void shield of one, and broke its eye. I grabbed the Torch Hammer, unloaded the Void core, and inserted it into my Fusion Rifle, swapping the Arc core, and disintegrated the Minotaur with my new enhancement. Rasputin began destroying Vex left to right, while I made sure the Minotaurs didn't reach anyone of us. "The Past will come back to haunt you!" shouted the Heart. It sent waves of Darkness to the right statue. The stone cracked. The statue was a Gate Lord trapped in stasis!

Instantly, this Axis Mind fired on us. The Hunter jumped down to help us. She pulled out her Rocket Launcher, and fired one rocket to the Primeval Mind's chest, exposing the Radiolaria. It lobbed bombs from its torch hammer throughout the fight, and that alone kept us running. Harpies teleported themselves into battle. I destroyed each one with my scout rifle and a bullet to each eye. Ras used his machine gun on the Mind, puncturing holes into the brass armor and knocking out bits of Radiolaria. Lilianna, however, was the one to put 3 solar shots into the Mind's weakness, engulfing the milky fluid in fire. The Dark Heart sent a floating orb of Darkness to the remains, and swallowed it whole. "The Past can always be beaten, but none have survived the Present!" The statue on the left broke apart, revealing the Eschaton Mind.

This Mind marched over to our current position, raised its fists, and leveled the platform that we stood underneath. I shouted, "RUN!" and we ran to the other side. Goblins and Hobs arrived on the scene, mechanically walking towards us. The Mind walked toward us, firing its Torch Hammer. When we hid, it waited for the Goblins to smoke us out, and walk right in front of it. To it, we were predictable, manageable, and above all, weak. The Primeval Mind had only a code of attack, but the Eschaton Mind could think. Rasputin threw down his Ward of Dawn under the left platform, and we rushed to its safety. "Ras," I said, "How can we defeat this guy?"

"It's waiting for us to come out, due to the Goblins. So, we take them out."

"Then more will come!" shouted Lilianna.

Ras explained, "We go over there," he pointed to the end of the semicircle, "and kill the Goblins. You will fire another missile at the Mind, breaking its armor. We'll work from there." The Ward fell, I shot down the Goblins, and we ran to where they were. Lilianna fired her second rocket the Mind. It dodged, but its Torch Hammer was blown to pieces. Eschaton ran to us, it brought its fist down on us, we evaded, and the Hunter charged one of her blades, and it struck through the Mind's fist, nailing its palm to the floor, Rasputin finished it off with a crushing Fist of Havoc to the head. The Heart stole the Mind's Radiolaria. "Worthless, compared to the Future!" The center statue shattered, and out came the Imminent Mind.

It started to pound on the left platform, drawing us out, then fired its Torch Hammer, on where we were going next! The Minotaurs appeared, and I had to think of a plan. I lobbed my Nova Bomb at the Mind, which shattered into 3 when it fired at the void projectile, eventually splitting into 9. The Mind was hit in its arms, chest, and legs, leaking Radiolaria everywhere. The Heart took the head of this Mind into itself. "I become the Past," it started to expand, "I control the Present," the left and right platforms (or what's left of them) formed into two pulsing pillars, "I weave the Future!" The Heart exploded, then contracted to form a giant Hydra with two mounted solar Torch Hammers, and three rotating solar grids, "I AM THE UNDYING MIND!"

Goblins appeared on the scene, and we hid behind the pillars. Once we pricked off the Goblins, we fired upon the Mind. It fired back, and the pillars pulsed again, bringing forth the Hobgoblins. The Mind came between the pillars, and extended his shields to full circle. We ran to avoid each and every shot fired from the impenetrable Mind. "Ras, do you have a plan?" I asked.

"I'm thinking about it!" he replied.

Lilianna drew her Golden Gun and other Arc Blade, slicing through the Hobs with ease, and firing one shot to each pillar, with the last shot shattering the Undying Mind's eye.

Rasputin then said, "That works too," and we opened fire upon the Mind. I lobbed my Nova Bomb at the Mind, destroying the bottom of the spine, disabling one of its shields. "YOU THINK THAT YOU CAN STOP ME!" The Mind fired two missiles. We ran, but they locked onto me, exploding in my back. "AAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUGGHHHHHH!" My body landed, Rasputin deployed a Ward of Dawn around me, and as my world faded, I heard Lilianna shout, "MAAAAAAAAX!"

* * *

I was sitting on a chair, at my favorite beach. The kids would build sand castles, couples would walk between the sand and the ocean, and everyone else would be swimming, or relaxing. I took my time enjoying the sun, remembering those days.

A familiar voice caught me by surprise. "Max?" It was the Hunter.

"Lilianna?" I asked, "What are you doing here?"

"Bringing you back, we need you in the fight!"

I remembered what happened, The Undying Mind, the missiles in the back, and The Black Garden. "Yeah, but I died, I can't go back." I stood up, and began walking to the ocean.

"We need you, you're the Warlock of Legend!"

"And you're a badass Hunter who can dual wield. You don't need me."

Lilianna grabbed my arm, pulled me aside, and said, "Remember what you said to me?"

I let out a big sigh. "Yeah, I remember."

"Then what did you say?"

I tried to remember. "The world is so cruel, but we can't act like it."

"Otherwise, we'd be like the ones who make it cruel." She pulled me back to my seat. She sat down in a chair next to mine, and invited me to sit in my own. I gave her a couple inches. "Before I was a Guardian, I was just another citizen in the City. My mom would come home every day with a smile on her face and a basket of vegetables and assorted meat. She would greet my sister and I, and she would always cook. Dad was killed in Freehold, and we were being taxed by the Consensus, constantly."

I felt sympathy for her. "I'm so sorry for you."

The Hunter continued, "Every time he came around, she would set up a small plate with her specialty and present 20% of her cash, and the taxer went back with his money and a full stomach. I asked her, 'How can you afford to feed him? We can barely go to school,' and she would say, 'Greed has made this world stale, but if there are enough kind people in the world, then we would be able to change things around.' That's when I petitioned to the Consensus, to see if they could release their chokehold on the citizens."

I tried to predict her next sentence, "But they wouldn't because the rich bribe them?"

"Exactly!" She was amazed, "But how did you know?"

"The same thing happened in my time. Billionaires would bribe politicians to do their dirty work for them. All of the money went to the richest 1%, and they called it Capitalism. I call it thievery with fountain pens."

She smiled a little. "That's what I said, and everyone else would pester me. Every time that I came home crying, Mom would wrap me tight, and told me to ignore the haters."

"She was the Light of your life," I guessed.

"Until one day." She paused. "My sister and I came home and we found a couple of letters addressed to both of us, and we soon found out that we were drafted. My mom came home with the usual, and everything else just played out. Except," she lost her voice, "the same taxer didn't leave and he..." she sobbed.

I reassured her that it was all his fault, that I believed her. I felt remorse for her.

Lilianna pushed back her sadness. "But she would always say, 'Be the Light when others are dark.'" She stood up and said, "I think we each other's Light to survive this Darkness."

"Maybe you're right," I stood up, "I'm ready to go back." Instantly, she embraced me. I stood shocked. I froze. A fire started to burn within me. "What are you doing?"

She rested her head on my chest and said, "Resurrecting you." The scenery changed, I was engulfed in flames, I was Fireborn!

* * *

I rose from death, jumped out of the Ward, and threw Solar Grenades at the pillars, melting them. Vex that were summoned by them were whisked away, disappearing one by one. I threw three Fusion grenades: one at the spine, and two at the Torch Hammers. "IMPOSSIBLE!" shouted the Undying Mind.

"Quite so!" I shouted back, and threw one last grenade at the eye, disabling it. The Mind was exploding, "AAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGHHHHHHHHH!" and then shrapnel flew everywhere. I glided to the bottom. The orange hues were replaced by blue and green ones. Alex came out of Lilianna's pocket. "Light is returning to the Traveler," she said, "The Speaker is calling us home."

* * *

The Dark Lord sat on his throne. The room was covered in complete Darkness. A Vex Hydra approached the throne. "Speak!" demanded the Dark Lord.

The Hydra spoke in the same voice as The Undying Mind. "Sir, we lost the Black Garden."

The Dark Lord clutched his fist. "How? It was guarded by the Sol Progeny and your phantom: The Undying Mind."

The Hydra muttered, "Three Guardians, from Earth. One of them was the Warlock of Legend."

The Dark Lord slammed his fist down on the armrest. "ORYX!" he cried.

The Hive god entered the room. "What are your commands, master?"

"Teach Xylar a lesson about dealing with Guardians. Bring your Son into Earth's realm, without a soulstone."

With that, Oryx bowed and left. Xylar turned to his master and said, "It will take him twice as long to bring back Crota, than it will be to activate the Vault of Glass."

The Dark Lord straightened his back. "So do it!"


	18. Whispers from The Dark

WHISPERS FROM THE DARK

The Speaker made his speech, which was inaudible to us, since we were in the launch bay. The Stranger stood alone, until we approached her. She said, "This is but one victory in the bitter and everlasting war. There is so much more to accomplish."

I approached her. "Like what?"

She turned to me, "The Vault of Glass." The Hunter and The Warminds came closer to the Exo, and she told all of us.

* * *

When the Vex invaded our worlds, they attacked relentlessly. Mercury was struck first, transformed into one of their machines. After abandoning it, they turned their hungry eyes to Venus and Mars. On Venus, they wanted to transform it into another machine. Instead, they crafted The Citadel and The Vault of Glass, both of which took only years to build. Afterwards, they manipulated time to produce the technologies available to rewrite history, and planted that tech into the Vault, creating a laboratory full of doomsday weapons, Oracles and Gorgons for example. However, using the Vault required an energy source: The Black Garden. In destroying the Undying Mind, you also broke the Garden's ties to the Vault and the Darkness. But Xylar, the Timeless, The Vex Lord himself, has already stored enough energy inside the Vault, and is ready to fire it across Space-Time. In order to break the Vault, you must render its own Time asunder.

* * *

The Stranger handed me her Rifle. "There two figures that man the Vault: one is The Templar, and the other is Atheon, Time's Conflux. Kill both of them, and Time will be able to breathe again." She turned to go. "Look for Pahanin, he'll tell you everything."

I looked at the Stranger again. "Thank you, for leading us down the right path."

"No, Max," she looked back, "You are the leader. Remember: all ends are beginnings," and The Stranger disappeared.

Lilianna looked at me and said, "So, where do we go now?"

I turned to the Warminds. "You two will go back to Freehold, and take back the Dust Palace. If you find any more pages, come back to me."

"Well then, let's go!" snapped Charlemagne, and they were off in their own ship.

I looked at the pages from Toland's Journal. Then I said, "Lilianna, is your gift from Rasputin whispering?"

She dug through her backpack, looking for it. When she did, she picked it up and said, "Yes!"

"Alright, if you want to develop it further, we can just go to the Moon, and massacre a lot of Hive before the whispers change." I read the page again, "It says to 'follow the whispers, wherever they lead you.'"

"So," she inquired, "let's go!"

When we touched down on the Moon for the second time, we pulled out our Sparrows, and headed straight for the Hellmouth.

The Hellmouth was a large hole carved deep into the Moon's core. Around the surface of this abyss lay patches of Fallen and Hive, often separated from each other. The House of Exile had their own outpost in a branch from the surface ring, whereas the Spawn of Crota lived in their own fortress surrounding the Hellmouth. The only places where the Hive stepped outside of their fortress were a totem with emanating deathly energy and an overlook into the abyss. There was one other part of this place, and that was unreachable for the time being.

We raced past the Fallen, and straight into the fortress, killing Acolytes and Knights along the way. The Hunter led the way through the fort, using her pulse rifle a few times before saying, "I need something else."

"Like what?" I asked.

An Acolyte ambushed us, but Lilianna was quicker on the draw. She pulled my Hand Cannon out of the holster, aimed at the Acolyte, and pulled the trigger. "Like this. May I have it?"

"Sure," and I gave her the holster.

"Thanks!" and she ran off, tossing her pulse rifle aside.

I picked up the weapon, and followed her into the fortress, where she picked up a sword, and battled three Swarm Princes, alone. Once the sword was shattered, we ventured deeper, only hearing a loud roar in the Circle of Bones. _I don't want to think about it._

For the entire time that we were on the Moon, Lilianna never stopped to catch a breath, whereas I was huffing and puffing almost every step of the way. As she killed more Hive, the whispers from her gift grew louder, so loud that even I could hear them. It hissed, "Light! Need Light! Give me more!"

The Hunter was puzzled, then she said, "The Crucible! Lord Shaxx can help us!"

I managed to catch her attention. "Don't you think that this weapon is devouring us? I mean, these whispers aren't natural if they are mentioned in Toland's Journal."

She paused. Her voice changed slightly, then she asked, "Don't you want to understand it? To find out how to destroy the Hive from the inside out?"

"Well, sort of. But you sound obsessed with the weapon, and that makes me scared."

"Are you afraid of me?"

I spoke without hesitation, "I'm afraid of losing a friend."

Lilianna's voice returned to normal. "So am I." She rested her hand on my shoulder, and we returned to orbit.

* * *

Rasputin and Charlemagne bypassed the first mainframe, and ran through the doorway, into the next room. "Come on guys! Hurry up!" A Titan and A Warlock tried to catch up to the Warmind, but inevitably kept falling behind. "You'd think that they would help us out," said the Warlock her partner.

The Titan agreed, "It wouldn't hurt them just to give us some time to catch up. But they're Warminds, it's what they do now." They ran up two flights of stairs in the semi-atrium, then to the second locked door. Rasputin pulled out his Ghost, which went straight for the lock. The Warlock whispered to the Titan, "Some Exo visited me the other night."

The Titan stared at the Warlock, "Jess, why didn't you tell me?"

Jess reassured, "It was nothing, Cass. She visited me, and told me about a Warlock of Legend."

Cass was starting to get jealous. "Jess, if you're going to have feelings about others..."

"I don't Cass. It's just that we have been called, or will be by some guy named Max. The Stranger talked about the Vault of Glass."

Cass was shocked. She had never heard of that place since her mentor, Kabr, was lost inside that Vex stronghold. "I'm listening."

The door opened up. Charlemagne shouted, "Let's move!", and everyone rushed through.

Jess explained as she raced up the stairs with Cass. "The Vault is preparing to fire."

"Fire?" The Titan was confused. "What do mean fire?"

"That's all the Stranger told me." The 3 ran through another empty room. "I don't know what that meant, but I presume that it's happening."

Rasputin turned to Jess and said, "It is."

"And how do you know all of this?"

Then Charlemagne spoke up, "Because we were visited by the Stranger, too."

Cass chimed in, "And she told you about this Warlock of Legend?"

Ras paused, then spoke, "I was there with him." They entered the Balcony, and the doors locked themselves.

Charlemagne shrieked, "IT'S A TRAP!" The Flayers and Colossi closed in on the Strike team, and they had the complete focus of the missiles.


	19. Thirst For Light

THIRST FOR LIGHT

Xur waited in the Tower, waiting for someone. He didn't wake up with a craving, he was looking for a Warlock. The Nine told him, "Look for a Warlock, He is of the Legend." His response: "How will I know what he looks like?" They answered with, "You'll know." _I'll know. Know what?_ He only carried Exotics in his pack, his only job is to trade them for Strange Coins, he wasn't told about a prophecy. Xur sighed, he wondered who will approach him first. Lo and behold, it was a Warlock.

* * *

"Are you Xur?" I asked the mysterious figure cloaked in black.

"That depends, if you're the Warlock?"

"I'm a Warlock, if anything."

Xur said nothing, sniffing in my direction. _Strange, nobody has done that before._ I reached in my pocket for a vibrating coin, and pulled it out. Xur began leaning toward the coin, before I pulled it away.

I looked at Toland's Journal again, and told the Agent of the Nine, "I'm looking for this frame, I'll pay with the coin."

He took the coin and said, "The essence of this frame is volatile. It needs to be infused with another weapon to act as the base."

I handed over the Pulse rifle, "How about this?"

Xur took it and shoved it into his pack. "Just wait a while."

 _Thanks._ I glumly looked over at the Hunter who was across the room, talking to Lord Shaxx. I heard them shouting, "But I need admittance!"

"The Crucible cannot be taken lightly. It is a challenge, and must be respected as such." The Crucible Handler wasn't budging an inch.

"Let her in!" I protested.

"Oh sure, a Warlock rushes to her aid. Have you seen this Guardian lately?"

"Yes, She is a badass, and she destroyed the Dark Heart with me. Now let her in!"

Shaxx mumbled, he made one slow turn before saying, "Fine, but don't expect any mercy."

Xur fished for the infused frame. "Take this to Banshee, immediately. And show him the page."

I rushed to the gunsmith with the frame and the page in hand, gave both to him and he said, "It'll take a while, but I need something else: an Infusion of Light. But you can only get that..."

"Let me guess, 'in the Crucible'?"

Banshee looked at me with cold eyes. "Next time, let me finish my own sentences."

I turned to Lilianna and jokingly said, "Let's go kill ourselves!"

The Hunter joked with, "Way ahead of you!"

While we were in the ship, the Hunter pressed some buttons in the console, and laid back. The Whispers came back, and she kept mumbling to herself, occasionally stroking the spiked Hand Cannon.

I tried to listen, and I managed to catch a word: Old Colony. I knew what she was referring to, and I knew what she was experiencing. She was thinking about ditching Leviathan. "If you're going to call that thing "Your Precious", then maybe we ought to stop this."

She turned, "As if you have anything better to say. Besides, you need an Infusion of Light from a match."

"Yeah but, maybe we ought to stop. That weapon is driving us to our deaths."

"Reward over consequence, right?"

I stopped. I thought about my next words carefully. "But I don't want to risk losing a friend."

She let go of the Hand Cannon, and rose. She came over and sat down next to me. "Neither do I."

"So, what is this Old Colony like?"

She placed her hand around my cranium, and closed her eyes, focusing on a memory. I closed my eyes too.

* * *

We stood in a moderate forest, and the first thing that came to mind was sequoias. But instead, these were maple trees, growing over a dead city. Not any city that is known globally, but it was still significant to me. I recognized the state: "Vermont."

The Hunter looked at me in shock, "What?"

I dragged her into an open street. "Do you see that mountain?"

"Yes."

"That is Mount Mansfield. My family came up here for a vacation, full of hiking and exploring, and mostly spending our time here, in Burlington."

"Cool!"

"Oh, but it gets cooler," and the scenery changed. We stood on the mountaintop, midday, and clear skies. "Over there is New Hampshire," I turned 90 degrees, "There's Massachusetts," I turned again, "And that's New York."

The Hunter was in awe of the view. "Woooooah!"

I looked at the Hunter. "Beyond Massachusetts lies Connecticut and Rhode Island, and past New Hampshire is Maine." I added, "But, I've heard of something called a Sunrise Summit."

She turned to me, amazed. "What is it?"

"You hike up Mt. Cadillac early, and then you wait for the sunrise."

"Can you show me?"

"Ehhh. I can't."

She sounded shocked. "WHY NOT?"

I felt anxious, "Because I never saw it. I wished that I grew up here, in New England."

"So where did you live?"

"New York City, or as you called it, the lair of the House of Stone."

She looked into my eyes. "I'm sorry, for your home."

I reassured her, "It was dead before you even got there. There was..." I faltered, "...something I can't tell you. At least not now."

Lilianna looked down. "Later?"

I nodded. "Later."

* * *

As we touched down, we were sorted into Team Alpha, alongside 4 random Guardians who look like pros. 3 Warlocks and 3 Hunters (Alpha) vs. 4 Titans, a Hunter and a Warlock (Bravo). The match was Control, but our current missions were still the same. Shaxx shouted over the intercom, "CAPTURE AND DEFEND, GUARDIANS!" and the match had started. Lilianna, another Warlock and I ran for Zone A. A Titan came towards us at breakneck speeds, Shotgun in hand. Lilianna aimed her regular hand cannon at the Titan's head, and pulled the trigger. The opponent was brought down. "Zone A secured!" shouted Shaxx. The three of us ran to Zone B, where Lilianna killed off another Guardian, and targeted the opposing Hunter. I focused on another Titan, killing him with The Stranger's Rifle. Every time that I killed an opposing Guardian, what remained of their light found its way into my pocket, where it began collecting and clumping itself together into an Infusion of Light. Lilianna on the other hand, she was having a good time with herself, murdering the competition left and right, all the while, letting the Whispers get louder.

When one zone wasn't guarded, we raced toward that one to take it. If it was contested, then we raced to our team's aid. The cycle of killing and dying was endless: If anyone died, then they will respawn in another section of the map, waiting to get their revenge. Towards the end of the match, I killed my rival Warlock, and gained the last part of the Infusion. Lilianna faced 2 Guardians at once on the other side of the map. All I heard was "BANG!" from the regular Hand Cannon, then a different noise.

The Hunter screamed, and I realized that the impossible has happened. The Thorn exploded! I rushed to Lilianna's aid, and noticed that she was unconscious. The Thorn lay on the ground, and out of curiosity, I picked it up. The scene changed to a jungle, with two Hunters happily racing each other. "Slow down, Jaren!" shouted one.

The other one replied, "Try to catch up, David!"

Another scene change. In Crota's realm, Eris and her Fireteam faced down the Hive Prince. David took an Ascendant Sword, and shortly dueled with Crota, before getting killed, and the Fireteam running away.

Another change. "I know you're still in there, David. I'm your brother!"

"David is dead," hissed the Dark Hunter, "I am Dredgen Yor!" There was a loud VAM, and the scene changed once again.

This time, there was a teenage girl, with Jaren's Ghost, and his Hand Cannon, facing off against the Fallen, with her Warlock sister. They fought side by side, until the Dark Hunter appeared. The sisters turned their attention on the new opponent. Dredgen shot one bullet from his Thorn, and it scraped the teenage Hunter. "Are you alright Shin?"

Shin pulled off her helmet, revealing a face that I recognize. "I'm fine, Jess." Then I realized, _Of course she looks familiar! Shin Malphur is Lilianna!_


	20. Rise of the Darkness

RISE OF THE DARKNESS

Dredgen Yor felt stronger, not for the fact that he was in an Oversoul, but for his Thorn feeding off of another Hunter. He felt redeemed, alongside the Hive Prince. _It worked! Now we can begin._

* * *

I dropped the Thorn, and reverted back to reality, falling backwards. Shin started to wake up. All 10 of the other Guardians surrounded us. "What happened?" she asked. I was breathless, felt like the world was spiraling out of control. "Shin?" I asked.

The Hunter stood up and turned around. "How did you-?" She eyed the Thorn on the ground. "You saw it, didn't you?"

A Hunter from Bravo stepped forward. "Shin? As in Shin Malphur?"

Shin knew that she couldn't hide her past anymore. "Yes. I am she."

The Bravo Hunter walked toward the Thorn and picked it up with a ripped cloak, and handed it to her. "My name is Omar Agah, and I almost went down into the Pit," he announced to the crowd, "This match is over!" Everyone else left, leaving only the three of us on the battlefield. Omar continued, "That Weapon of Sorrow is connected to a beast named Phogoth, an Ogre that resides in the Hellmouth's Summoning Pits." He walked toward us, and helped me up. "Kill Xyor first; she controls Phogoth, and thus could bring it back to life if she so desires. Then destroy Phogoth, and this weapon can no longer corrupt you."

I thanked him, then said, "Come with us! We'll unbind this Thorn together!"

"You want me to go the Moon with you guys?"

Shin answered with a definite, "Yes!"

"Alright then," said Omar, "Let's go break a curse!"

* * *

Rasputin returned to the Tower, with Jess and Cass. He turned to them and said, "Thanks for saving Charlemagne's cortex," He looked at the Warmind Core, inside the Heavy Weapon, "Or what's left of him."

Jess said "Your welcome" and walked away. Cass walked up to the Warmind of Earth. "She's a bit depressed due to losing her mentor. He was lost in the Vault of Glass."

Ras realized, "Praedyth."

"I'm afraid for her. She is too consumed by the Vault, and hellbent on avenging him." The Titan paused. "If she doesn't put down her books, she might be consumed as well."

"Oh, I know the feeling."

Cass studied her new teammate. Though she was Human, she could peer through Rasputin's mind like an open book. "You're alone. You love someone, but he doesn't reciprocate it. He sees you as a friend, but nothing more."

Ras shivered. _Oh, that's new._

Cass continued to cycle around him, "It's Charlemagne, isn't it?"

Charlemagne was dazed and confused. "Rasputin? You have a crush on me!?"

The Titan Warmind froze and fainted on the spot.

* * *

Shin, Omar, and I touched down on the ring around the Pit. Alex said, "Well, we'll let the weapon lead the way." Shin pulled out the Thorn, wrapping the used cloak around the handle. It began to vibrate and point downward. "We have our heading! Let's move!" We charged through the entrance of the fortress, and maneuvered through the hallways to the Gatehouse.

When we arrived at the locked door, Alex floated toward the only lock binding it, scanning for a weakness. Thrall screamed, Acolytes snarled, Omar said, "We've got company!" He pulled out his Arc Blade, and charged through the Thrall. Shin and I ran up the steps to meet the Acolytes. On cue, she shot them down with her regular Hand Cannon. I glided over to the other platform and dealt with the Acolytes there. Alex announced, "The lock's reconfiguring. It'll take a while longer, just hang tight."

More Thralls and Acolytes came out, accompanied by a few Knights with cleavers and boomers in hand. Shin and Omar switched places. Thrall charged upon her. A Knight came running toward me as I jumped down and away from the Thrall, firing whatever I had on the Knight. Shin drew her Arc Blade and Golden Gun, slashed through the horde, and her first golden bullet into the Knight's head. Her other two bullets vaporized the Knights that were closing in on Omar. "Can't you guys save yourselves?" she joked. The Ghost said, "I found a pattern guys, it shouldn't be too long now."

Two Wizards appeared alongside the Thrall, Acolytes, and Knights. I threw a Fusion grenade at one, melting it. Shin killed the Acolytes with a few headshots; Omar handled the Knights with his Hand Cannon; I took care of the Thrall with the Stranger's Rifle, and took down the Wizard with my Void Fusion Rifle. Alex broke the lock and said, "Got it! The gate's opening!" and we rushed through the tunnels.

As we were getting close to the Summoning Pits, the Thorn began to vibrate rapidly and hum louder. "This way!" shouted Shin. We followed her down bridges, staircases, and tunnels before arriving at the Circle of Bones. Thorn pointed 60 degrees to the left, and we ran in that direction. Shin cleared the path, and I took up the rear. When we encountered two burly Knights, I threw my Nova Bomb, disintegrating both of them. We ran through the doorway and a few rooms to find the Summoning Pits, with Phogoth in the center.

The Pits were ovular, instead of circular. The platforms ranged in height, but mainly on the edges. Out in the distance was a huge tunnel leading to nowhere. Omar's Ghost observed and said, "Well, at least it's chained up." Thrall came charging up the set of stairs, Shin threw a Swarm Grenade at them, and focused her fire power on the Ogre. I shot down some Acolytes, and followed Shin's lead. Once Omar directed his firepower on Phogoth, it broke free of its chains, and the fight was on.

Shin lead us to small boulder that we could use for cover. Phogoth directed his eye beam toward us. Omar sniped the Acolytes and Knights on the higher platforms, Shin focused her firepower on Phogoth's external heart, and I made sure that the Thrall didn't surprise us. Once our weapons converged on the Ogre, the Wizards came out. Among them was Xyor; the Thorn rattled intensely, and Shin had to stuff it down her backpack just to make sure that it didn't return to the Hive. She raised her Golden Gun, and fought with herself just to direct every bullet to Xyor, singeing her tattered robes. Xyor lobbed Bolts of Darkness at us, and I returned the favor with a Scatter Grenade, blasting her into atoms. Phogoth was outraged. It began tearing down the pillars surrounding it, decimating the platforms, destroying everything it could see. I launched a Nova Bomb at the Ogre's second heart, and the Ogre wailed as it crumbled away. Thorn stopped rattling, and whispered, "NOOOOOoooooo..."

Shin felt the weight of Darkness ease off of her back. At first, she was quiet, "It's done," then louder, "IT'S FINALLY DONE!" Everyone began jumping around, careless about the rest of the world.

As we were celebrating, I noticed something glint out of the corner of my eye. Curious, I glided over to it, and looked down at, not one, but a pile of silvery rose petals. I picked them up, put them in my other pocket, and ran back to the exhausted Hunters.

Omar said, "Well, I better be heading out. See you guys later!" and he teleported back to his ship.

Shin sat down and looked at the tunnel. "Do you ever get any breaks?" she asked.

I told her, "Not since I was resurrected from the dead."

She reasoned, "Yeah, I guess that's true," and wanted me to sit down next to her.

I did, and every time she tried to get close to me, I wanted to just run away. Yet at the same time, I wanted to be close to her. _What should I do?_

She asked another question, "What was it like, the Before?"

"Beautiful," I answered, "Just beautiful." I turned to notice that she was looking at me.

She touched my hand again, this time trying to see my entire past. "What do you have locked up? What can be so secretive that you can't share it with anyone else?"

I recoiled. "Um, another time." With that, we teleported ourselves onto her ship, and flew back to the Tower.

* * *

Atheon gave his speech. He was so certain that nothing can stop him now. Vex from the past, present, and future gathered in the Inner Sanctum to hear his voice. Everyone, even the Supplicants, were in awe. He spoke with a rattle in his vocal chords. "ON THIS DAY, TIME WILL BE BENT IN A WAY THAT NO ONE CAN FIX IT! ON THIS DAY, OUR WEAPON, THIS VAULT OF GLASS WHICH WE HAVE BUILT, HAS BEEN COMPLETED. ON THIS DAY, WE WILL DESTROY THE LAST CITY, AND REWRITE THE UNIVERSE INTO OUR CODE! ON THIS DAY, NOT EVEN THE GUARDIANS CAN STOP US FROM REWRITING THE BIG BANG ITSELF. WE ARE THE MASTERS OF TIME AND SPACE THEMSELVES!" The Vex cheered in their own voices. "FIRE!"


	21. 24 Hours Left

24 HOURS LEFT

We got back to the Tower, where The Stranger and Cass were hovering over Rasputin's body. "What happened?"

Cass sounded worried, "He fainted."

"Why?"

She faltered. "Because I told everyone the truth."

I started sweating bullets. "What truth?"

"He's in love."

I quietly sighed. "With who?"

"Charlemagne."

"And what's wrong with that?"

"Nothing," she said, "but he still fainted."

I crouched down next to Rasputin. "Hey, it's alright. We're here to support you."

He woke up. "What happened?" I told him about the Thorn and who Lilianna really was. "Really? Her real name is Shin Malphur?"

"Yep."

Pahanin walked up to us. "I would tell you everything, but The Stranger told me that the Vault of Glass is firing, and we only have 24 hours left to stop it." His voice was similar to that of a raspy cowboy from the wild west.

The Exo turned to us, "It's only a matter of time before everything is undone."

Shin had a blank face, but I knew what this meant. "We need a plan, everyone to Shin's room!" When we got there, Rasputin was trying to explain to Charlemagne why he had a crush. Shin and Jess were catching up with Cass, and they joked around. Pahanin was on his sixth beer, even though he was an Exo. The Stranger told me, "You need a Ghost."

"My last one killed my friend," I replied.

"You won't last long..."

"I'll be fine, I can self-resurrect."

The Stranger said, "The Vanguard will catch you," and she handed me a dead Ghost. When I touched it, it came to life and said, "Hello, Max," in a familiar voice. "Remember me?"

I said, "Yes, Jared," and I placed him inside my pocket. I turned to the other Guardians, with a slide show ready to go.

I spoke to everyone like I was Danny Ocean. "Okay then, I'll make this brief. The Vault of Glass is the impenetrable Vex fortress that also acts as their weapon to disorient the Space-Time continuum. If they succeed, then the universe bows to their iron fist, and we all know how that's going to end." I slid in the first image. "The Entrance is tricky: in order to open the Vault, we have to stand on three plates arranged in a U-shape."

Pahanin butted in, "But to do that, you need Praetorian chips, because the Vault won't recognize you unless you have one of these chips." He pulled out a small pouch. "Luckily for you, I have some," and he handed everyone their own chips. "The plates won't know who you are, but the Praetorians will. If they step on the plate, it will reorient to them, and you have to kill them to regain control."

"Next time if you have a comment, ask before you leap!" I said, "Now, once that door is open, that's when things get tricky." I went to the next slide, "After a bunch of tunnels and platforms, we'll end up in the Templar's Well. Here is where the first Vault operator is located. The Templar will attempt to bring forward three Confluxes, ones in which will charge his weapon to expunge everything. Our job is to make sure those Confluxes remain uncharged." Pahanin sighed and raised his hand. "Yes?" I asked, "Anything you want to add?"

He took the floor. "Yeah, the Vex will try to sacrifice themselves to these Confluxes, and that is how we are expunged. Also, avoid the headless Fanatics. They explode, and leave a puddle in their wake: DON'T TOUCH IT! If you do, you are Marked for Negation, and must go to the central ring," he pointed to the center of the map, "before The Templar negates you." Then he went to the next slide, "After that, The Templar will summon his Oracles to mark us. Kill the Oracles first. If they mark you, same deal applies, and we have to start that round all over." He added a slide and exclaimed, "My old friend, Kabr, made a wound in the Vault, by allowing his essence to flow within the Vault and take the form of the Aegis. This is the only thing that can destroy The Templar's circular shield. Once that is done, open fire on him. Repeat as necessary." The Exo Hunter went back to his seat.

"Thank you, Pahanin." I went to the next slide. "When I dismantled the Pocket Infinity, I noticed that it took a few notes on The Gorgon's Labyrinth and the Inner Sanctum itself. The Gorgons are like the ones from the myths: catch their gaze, and you die." Then I emphasised, "These Gorgons will thread your death to every Guardian in the Vault, so don't get caught, and find the way out." I moved to the next slide, "From there, it's a cakewalk: jump on the various platforms, reach the other side, and enter the Inner Sanctum where..." I switched slides, only to discover that there was nothing, "...um...I think that's all I have."

The Stranger finished off, "In the Sanctum, you will need to kill three Gatekeepers: one in the present to unlock the gates, and the other two in the past and the future to obtain those Aegises, and bring them back to the present, to stop any more Vex from sacrificing themselves. And Atheon," She paused, "You'll figure him out," and she turned to go.

"Wait, Stranger," I said, "Is there anything else?"

"No, you're a Warlock, you can get past this." She disappeared.

"Well," I said, "Let's get moving!"

When we arrived back in the Plaza, I went straight for the gunsmith, where I handed him the Infusion, and he gave me the reformed pulse rifle. "Be careful. It's dangerous in way I've never seen before. It was giving off some sort of 'bad juju' vibes."

I thought, "That's a good name," and I equipped the Bad Juju. Then I handed him the rose petals and asked, "Can you reforge this into a weapon?"

He took the petals, placed them in a mini-kiln, and said, "Wait a while."

Cass went to her vault, pulled out an Auto Rifle, a Shotgun, and a white and gold Rocket Launcher. When I asked her about it, she said it was called the Gjallarhorn.

Rasputin handed Charlemagne back to Pahanin, feeling a little sad for a while, then switched to a regular Rocket Launcher, and swapped his old Shotgun for one that he found randomly. He called it the Invective.

Shin and Jess went to their vault, where Jess pulled out a large, red sniper rifle that she dubbed the Ice Breaker. Shin held onto her Hand Cannons, twirling them in her fingers, then holstering them by her sides.

Banshee shouted, "DONE!" and he presented a Hand Cannon with a jet black handle and a silver barrel. "I call it the Hawkmoon. The Barrel has mystical qualities that enhance three random bullets, and the chamber itself can hold 13."

"Thanks," and I walked to Lilianna with the Hand Cannon. "I want you to have it."

"Why?"

"Just my way of saying 'Thank you'."

She took it out of my hands, and replaced the regular Hand Cannon with the Hawkmoon. "Thanks Max!"

I grinned, "You're welcome," and the six of us departed for the Vault of Glass.

* * *

The Templar cackled to himself. _Well done, Atheon. Now to lure the Guardians into our trap!_


	22. The Well of Pain

THE WELL OF PAIN

The Aegis waited in the strands of Time. It waited for the Six. _Come on guys, the Universe is dying!_

* * *

 **16 Hours Left**

We touched down in the Waking Ruins. The U-shape ascended from the left side and the first plate, up an incline to the door and the second plate, then around a corner to the last plate on the right side. In the middle was the jungle floor, cluttered with Vex pillars. I asked the Fireteam, "Everyone knows the plan?"

They replied with a unanimous "Yes!"

"Good. As they say on Gallifrey: ALLONS-Y!" We ran up the left side.

At the first plate, Rasputin gunned down a Praetorian with the Invective, and said, "I'll stay here."

"So will I," said Pahanin.

"Alright then," I shouted, and the rest of us moved to the next plate, taking down another Praetorian. Cass and Jess offered to stay at the second plate, leaving Shin and I to defend the last one.

As the Spire was forming, Shin asked me, "Did you have friends in the Before?"

I answered, "None that I could keep for long." A Praetorian surprised me from behind. I answered him by firing my Void Fusion Rifle, disintegrating it.

Another Praetorian came, this time from Shin's side. She whipped out the Thorn and the Hawkmoon in her right and left hands respectively, and tore apart the Vex brute. "Politics, work, girlfriend?"

"Tried to escape from, tried to find, and not enough time." The base of the Spire was formed, and the Spire was beginning to ascend. Then it suddenly stopped. I spoke through the intercom. "What happened guys?"

Jess sniped the Praetorian invading on the left. "Ras and Pahanin are arguing over something, and didn't see the Praetorian."

"Thanks, Jess!" then to the Exos, "Guys, focus on the task at hand. You can argue over Charlemagne later."

They started to say, "B-but, w-we-"

"No time, we have 16 hours, remember?"

They stopped clowning around, and the Spire was forming again. Somewhere close to the top, it stopped forming again when a Praetorian surprised Shin and myself, and when another one caught Cass off-guard. Both times were easily solved by either a Fusion Rifle, or a shotgun. In both cases, the Spire kept moving. Once it was at the peak, it fired a laser into the Vault door, everyone grabbed their Sparrows and raced inside. "I'll get there before you can!" I shouted.

"You'll have to catch up to me first!" shouted Shin.

We raced through the small tunnels, got some Ascendiant materials, and moved on to the Templar's Well.

The Well was rectangular in shape, surrounded by floating stone platforms all at the starting platform's height. The Well itself had three levels: the low level, which was close to The Templar's spawn point, and stopped right below him; the high level which was reserved for the top left, the spawn tunnel on the top right, and the bottom of the map; and the middle level which covered everything else.

Once everyone was on the large starting platform, I began to say, "Here's what's going to happen," then Pahanin argued, "It won't work I know this place like the back of my hand," to which Rasputin bickered, "No, you've got it all wrong!" Cass butted in with, "I know my mentor, he would do this," and Jess came in with, "Kabr thinks like a Titan, we need Praedyth's advice!"

The only one who wasn't chaotically arguing was Shin. She whistled in a rather high pitch and shouted, "HEY!" All of us fell silent and gave her our undivided attention. When she spoke, Shin had this unparalleled confidence that could convince even the most skeptical, and she was never bossy at all. "If we stick to a simple plan, then we'll get through this with the least scars. Now, all of us are going to guard the Confluxes as they pop up and kill the Vex that get near them, and none of us are going to descend into chaos in the meantime."

Many of us muttered between ourselves. I said to them, "She's right. Do what she says."

Jess said, "I call sniper!"

The rest of us said, "DAMN!" and jumped down into the Well.

The Templar appeared in his spot. He shouted, "Ahh, guests!" The bottom Conflux appeared. "Well, you're too late! The Vault is prepared to fire, and the Universe itself will finally know pain!" The Goblins came out of their spawn points, with the Fanatics closely behind them.

Jess switched to her Ice Breaker, and remained up top, watching over the left side of the Well. Everyone else guarded the Conflux. Cass watched the middle, the Exos protected the right side, while Shin and I took our post on the left. 5 Goblins marched down the middle and sides, we defended against all of them. Ras prefered his Invective, Pahanin used his Scout Rifle, Cass liked the Auto Rifle, Shin began firing from both the Thorn and the Hawkmoon, and I killed most of my enemies with the Bad Juju. After a few minutes, the Conflux disappeared. "BLAST!" shouted the Templar, "Fanatics! Do your duty!" and he disappeared. The poisonous Fanatics came out of nowhere. We ran around tirelessly, sometimes destroying those headless Vex, other times, we were marked, and went to the ring in the center. At times, I thought it was whispering something.

The Templar appeared shouted, "NEGATE!" but to no avail. The left and right Confluxes appeared. Cass, Ras, and Pahanin ran to the right, and Shin and I went for the left. Goblins and Minotaurs marched out of their holes to the Confluxes. Jess began sniping the Hobgoblins on the floating platforms. I watched the center from the left, Cass and Pahanin did so from the right, Ras kept a close eye on the back right spawn point, and Shin never shifted her focus from the back left spawn point. There was only one Vex that made it to the right Conflux and sacrificed itself, but other than that, we were fine. The Confluxes disappeared. The Fanatics came out. We ran.

For a minute, most of the Well was covered in poisonous green puddles, until the Templar came back, and summoned all 3 Confluxes. Jess said, "I'll watch the Left side, don't worry about it."

Cass ran to that side and jokingly asked, "What if you miss?"

Jess replied, "I never do."

"That leaves Pahanin and Ras to cover the right, and Max and I in the center," finished Shin.

Over the intercom, I heard Ras and Pahanin arguing again, this time over the Vex. I wanted to say, "Focus!" but then decided to leave them alone. As a team, we missed a Goblin going for the center, and one going for the right. Everyone knew that the last sacrifice would destroy everything. We began sweating in our armor. I wanted to brush it off of my forehead, but then remembered that I was wearing a helmet. Another Goblin got close to a Conflux, but we took it down just in time.

The Confluxes crumbled. The Templar shouted, "YOU THINK THAT EVERYTHING MUST BOW TO YOU, HUH? WELL, I'LL PROVE YOU WRONG! ORACLES!" Piano notes began humming in the air, each one tied to one of 7 yellow-greenish cubes.

In this moment, Pahanin's past came back to haunt him. He trembled for a while. "The Oracles! Don't let them rewrite your past!"

Charlemagne blurted, "So we kill them fast! Keep yourselves together, guys!"

The central Oracle appeared, and Rasputin answered it with the Invective, sending it back into its slumber. Two more Oracles appeared, behind the Conflux ruins on both sides, and we rushed to both, sending both back with our weapons. Goblins and Harpies began flooding the place, The Templar prepared his ritual, and the next set of Oracles appeared. One was on the left side from the middle, and the other 2 were near The Templar's spawn on both the left and the right. Cass took the top left, I handled the bottom left, and Shin covered the top right. Another ritual. We cleaned out the place of Goblins and Harpies as best as we could. The next set: Conflux Right, bottom Left, Top Right. Jess sniped the left one, leaving the rest of us to deal with the other two on the right.

The Oracles began whispering. "She never loved you, Jess. She always prefered Shin." Jess fought against them. "No, I refuse to believe that!"

They went to Cass, "Kabr died frail and weak, he was never a good Titan."

Cass shouted, "I'LL NEVER BELIEVE IT!"

They tempted Rasputin, "You are always abandoned, and forever will be."

Rasputin shouted, "You're wrong!"

Then they changed voices. To Pahanin, they sounded like Andal Brask. "Pahanin, so weak and fragile, he isn't even close to being a Hunter."

Pahanin replied, "I'm right here, you dumb fool!"

To Charlemagne, it was Jared, "He isn't perfect, he never will be. Shut him down!"

Charlemagne wailed, "I'M ALIVE! CAN'T YOU HEAR ME!?"

To Shin, it was me, "You can't be trusted."

To me, it was Shin, "You call yourself a Warlock? You don't even have the courage to speak to me!"

All 7 Oracles appeared at once. Enraged, I ran around, Fusion Rifle in hand, blasting every Oracle on the right side and center; Shin tore through the other Oracles on the left side. We met back in the center. Shin began to shout in my face, "I can't be trusted? Is that why you're pulling yourself away?"

I tried to remain calm. "No, I'm afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

I bit back. "Everything!"

"Is there something I don't know about?"

I shouted, "THE WHOLE! WORLD! ENDED!" Shin didn't respond. I sat down. My voice began to break, "It ended all around me. World War 3 happened, and I lost everyone." Shin sat across from me. "There was a time when everyone was at each other's throats, and due to nuclear weapons, the entire planet was ravaged. Humanity stayed in the bunkers, but I was one of the few on the front lines. I would tell you more, but there is just too much to explain, and I wouldn't know if you'd reject me if I told you."

Shin calmed down, "So you closed yourself in."

I nodded.

Shin helped me stand. "So, open up. We need to trust each other."

Jess spoke through the intercom, "Aw, a cute couple. Now can we please get the Aegis and get moving!?"

I stood up, "Right! Now who'll-"

Cass was already at the central ring. "I'll take it. I know Kabr, I know what to do."

Shin stood, and pulled out her Hand Cannons. "Are you sure?"

Cass said, "He was my mentor, the closest thing I ever had to a Father," and she took the Aegis and slid it onto her left arm.

The Templar appeared again. "YOU SHATTERED THE CONFLUXES. YOU DESTROYED THE ORACLES! NOW, I WILL SEVER ALL!" He fired from his 4 Torch Hammers. We ran to the top right side, just as the Harpies came out.

The Aegis spoke with a calm and collected voice, "Cass, it is I, Kabr. Listen well, for we are the key to defeating the Templar. If you want to shield and cleanse your friends, plant me into the ground, and I will protect all of you. Should you want to fire a bolt of light at the Templar, extend your arm in a right angle, and I will drop the Hydra's shield."

Cass was determined to avenge her mentor. She was determined to destroy the Templar.

Pahanin fought against his fear, he fought against his initial instinct to run.

Rasputin had waited for this moment, he longed for it.

Shin aimed her Hand Cannons. She was ready to go.

I prepared myself, feeling confident, yet unsure.

The Harpies came, and we shot them down. An Oracle appeared, and Jess sniped it. "Go for the Templar! I've got the Oracles from up here."

I pulled out my new Ghost and asked, "Jared, do you have some good music?"

Jared replied, "How does _The Battle of Evermore_ sound?"

"Sounds good to me!" Instantly, the walls were filled with the sounds of Led Zeppelin. The Well was placed so strategically in a massive cave, so that anything, even Led Zeppelin could be heard at 90 decibels.

Cass fired her first bolt, "Get ready guys!" The Templar's shield was dropped. He caged in grids, but Cass freed all of us from detainment, just as the first line began.

The Templar screamed, "WHAT IS THAT NOISE THAT POLLUTES MY WELL!?" Everyone opened fire on him. "CURSE THIS NOISE!" He teleported, and brought up his shield again.

Another Oracle appeared. Jess sniped it. Harpies began to close in. Cass charged into them, and flung some aside with the Aegis. She fired again, dropping our enemy's shield. Some of us were detained this time, but Shin managed to free all of us. Cass pulled out her Gjallarhorn, and fired 2 rockets at the Templar, then reloaded to repeat herself. Jess sniped into his eye; Shin fired from her Rocket Launcher, and everyone else used their primaries. The Templar teleported again. And we fell into this process of removing Oracles, destroying Harpies, taking down the Templar's shield freeing ourselves from detainment, and shattering his eye.

At one point, Pahanin's Golden Gun melted The Templar's left Torch Hammers. The Hydra howled in pain, right around the 27th line of the song. "MINOTAURS!" he shouted, "DO YOUR WORST!" and he teleported again. With my Void Fusion Rifle, I took down the Minotaurs that came too close to us. It took a while, but eventually Cass shot her last bolt at the Templar, and we directed everything upon the Templar. Jess jumped down, launched her shattered Nova Bomb at the large Hydra, and destroyed it, just in time for the final lines. The Templar screamed in agony as he blew up.

Tiny blue strands began flowing throughout the Well, some of which passed through our armor, interlacing it with the Vex radiolaria that was spilled on the floor. The results: The Titans' armor began to look like Kabr's, both of the Hunters' armor sets changed as well, making them look like Prime Zealots, and the Warlocks had a different set of armor that some have drawn parallels to the Hezen Lords. Our special weapons changed as well. Cass's original shotgun is now bronze, and lays down a Found Verdict of guilty on any Oracle. Shin's sniper rifle now holds 6 shots, and fulfills Praedyth's Revenge on the Vault. My Fusion Rifle was given a different core, and I dubbed it 'The Praetorian Foil.'

The Aegis disappeared, the main door opened, but Pahanin led us into a secretive door, and down a dark tunnel.

* * *

Atheon laughed. _Those fools! They don't even know that they have only 20 minutes before Universal Armageddon!_


	23. Shards of the Past

SHARDS OF THE PAST

Pahanin lead us into a small, almost endless tunnel, that gave everyone the cramps. When we reached the Chest, many of us were trying to fix our arms or straighten our backs, and I said to Pahanin,"We came all this way for THIS?" He didn't say a word. He opened the chest to reveal the glimmer, cloaks, marks, and bonds inside. Pahanin took one cloak, and immediately swapped his old one for it. Shin did the same, saying it resembled a Shattered Vault. Plus, she loves long cloaks. Rasputin and Cass now wear the marks which shine a Light of the Great Prism from within. As for Jess and I, we reached in for Fragments of the Prime, and replaced our old bonds with them. Travelling further down a large tunnel, we landed in The Gorgon's Labyrinth.

As we tried to run forward, Rasputin said, "Hold up! Do you see that glowing Harpy over there?" All of us nodded. "That's a Gorgon!" he continued, "And if any one of them sees any of you, it will kill all of us!"

Pahanin asked, "What do we do?"

I answered with, "Um, DON'T GET CAUGHT!"

"Exactly!" finished the Warmind, "Now follow me!" Ras led us up a cliff to avoid the first Gorgon. When the coast was clear, he led us to a rock mound that the second Gorgon cycled around. After passing that without alerting the Gorgon, we ran through a rocky hallway, only to stop before the third Gorgon. Pahanin was eager to go after the Gorgon passed by for the first time. "Wait!" whispered the Warmind.

The Exo Hunter whined, "WHYYY!?"

"SHHHH!" Ras pointed to the Gorgon that was already moving in the other direction. _1, 2, 3, 4, 5..._ "Now, we can go." We walked toward the exit, when suddenly the same Gorgon came back. "Hurry!" whispered the Warmind, and we all dove for the exit, just in time for the Gorgon to pass us. All of us let out a big sigh, and rushed through a small tunnel.

At the end of the tunnel was a wide valley with only 8 stone platforms that appear and disappear from our timeline automatically, descending in a spiral, then ending on the other side. When the first platform fell into our time, Jess took the first step without blinking an eye. I went next, and everyone soon followed. The second platform appeared, and all of us swapped platforms. Seconds later, the first disappeared. This continued until we reached the eighth, and we immediately jumped onto the narrow ledge across from us. To get to the entrance to the Inner Sanctum, each of us had to creep on the edge of the wall, in the same order that we traversed the gap. When we reached the open space, the door opened to a cubed hallway with one other door, leading directly into the Inner Sanctum.

The Sanctum was mostly made of stone and grids of iron. The only exception was the air, which had tiny splinters of glass in it. The Sanctum had stone walls on the left, right, and back. The front was mainly for the Glass Throne, which has yet to rise. There are Time Gates in the middle of both the left and right sides, which led to the future and the past respectively. The floor had two sets of steps leading to the left and right sides, which led to bridges connecting the sides to the front of the Sanctum. In the middle of the room, there was an isolated rectangular platform, and trailing from the front was a narrowing staircase and path that leads to nowhere but another endless tunnel.

The Hydra that posed as the Gatekeeper floated in the front of the room, without a shield, watching the whole operation. The Precursors guarded their past, and the Descendants protected their future. We entered the Sanctum, and suddenly, all of their eyes focused on us. They didn't raise their weapons, the Gatekeeper didn't even fire. There was only a harsh voice that seemed to cut through the fabric of reality. "You're just in time, Guardians," it said, "to witness the end of your precious universe." Then the Vex began to fire.

Jess shouted, "SCATTER!" and on command, Ras, Pahanin, and Jess went for the Precursors, while Shin, Cass, and I rushed over to the Descendants on the left side. The Warlock then said, "We need these gates open to get the two Aegises."

I responded with, "Alright then!"

Cass and I were busy dealing with the Goblins and Hobgoblins from the future, and Shin used her new Praedyth's Revenge to snipe the Gatekeeper in the eye, destroying it with 6 shots. Pahanin was busy throwing knives into Precursor Goblins and Hobs, and waited for someone on his side to step on the plate and activate the Time Gate to the Past. Rasputin stayed behind, while Jess and the Exo Hunter ran into the Gate to grab the past Aegis. They cleared out that timeline, with its Gatekeeper being their last kill. Jess took the Aegis from the far front, brought it back to the Present, and cleansed the Exo. Jess then said, "Ras, Pahanin, go the newly formed Conflux and guard it." They went immediately, and Jess came to us, just as we opened the gate to the future. I went with Jess into the Future, and we destroyed all of the Descendants there, alongside their Gatekeeper. Every time my vision faded, Jess gave me a quick cleanse. I ran for the this Aegis, grabbed it, and ran back through the gate. Jess said, "Everyone to the Conflux!" and we did just that.

Minotaurs came in every direction. Jess focused on the Precursors, I directed myself to the Descendants, and the rest converged on the other Minotaurs. All six of held the line. No Minotaur cloud pass us, and it wasn't long until we noticed a different pitch in the air. The Conflux shattered, the Glass Throne was raised, and the pitch sounded like static at first. We turned around, and found a growing blue orb underneath the Throne. The orb exploded, and the glass splinters converged on the explosion, forming a giant Glass Minotaur bound together by Radiolaria. "I am the needle that flows through Time, unraveling and reweaving the continuum. I am its Conflux, built for one purpose: Extermination!"

Atheon stepped forward with his Torch Hammer in his right hand, Pahanin was left in shock, and the rest of us ran back. We shouted, "PAHANIN!" The Exo Hunter just stood there, frozen by the shear perfection of Time's Conflux. He said, "So that's your name! Pahanin, the one who ran away in fear of death, the one who left his friends to rot. I salute you, coward."

Pahanin came to his senses. "You killed Kabr! His blood is on your hands!"

Atheon picked up Charlemagne with two fingers. He looked at Rasputin, "You love him, don't you?"

Rasputin simply nodded, and Atheon crushed Charlemagne with his empty fist. Rasputin screamed, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

"Poor Exos," he continued, "So emotional, distracted, AND HUMAN!" Atheon kicked Pahanin aside, and into the Void. The Exo Hunter screamed as he descended into oblivion, and the rest of us had to deal with the supplicants. Time's Conflux raised his left hand. Explosive Harpies known as Supplicants were teleported onto the scene. Cass, Shin, and I were sent into the past. Cass took the Aegis, shouted "PAST!" into the intercom, and Shin looked at me in shock and awe as each red Oracle came out of hiding.

The scene began to change around all of us. I sat on the chair in my room, looking at the election results: Hillary Clinton vs. Donald Drumpf. Months before, I dedicated myself to support either Bernie or Clinton, depending on who got the nomination. Now, looking at the results, I couldn't believe it. My fears had come alive, Drumpf won the election. My family sold most of our stuff in one giant yard sale, then sold the house after New Year's Eve, and we left for Canada right before the inauguration. We shot the first one down, with Cass cleansing us, and the second Oracle came to life. Shin began to say something, but the scene changed again.

This time, I was with my brother and 4 others. We infiltrated the newly formed Fascist States of America, and attempted to sabotage Drumpf's nuclear weapons. But we were betrayed. One of my teammates, Erik Larson, killed my brother at the launch station, and the rest of us had to run back to Canada with our tails between our legs, and I was the only one who survived. Shin said, "Your team-"

We killed the Second Oracle, just as the Third appeared. It was World War 3, The Allied World against the F.S.A. and Putin's Russia. I was promoted to General of the Allies, and I was hunkered in a bunker with the rest of the world's leaders and military commanders. Our fingers were resting on Nuclear triggers, as we watched our brave soldiers fight the New Axis Powers. Then, the F.S.A. sent nukes raining down on them, irradiating the land. "What now?" I asked.

The leaders turned to me and said, "Launch it."

"But billions will die!"

"LAUNCH THE ANNIHILATION BOMB!" shouted the U.K. Prime Minister. I covered my eyes, and pressed the button. A new image appeared on the screens: A flying missile containing one speck of pure matter in one tube, and pure antimatter in the other tube, and that later touched Washington D.C. Within minutes, the capital was ravaged, and the entire nation was torn apart by chaos. Shin's jaw dropped. I killed the Oracle, and the fourth one appeared with a new scene.

I was with my assault team, ready to end the war in Russia. We plowed through Putin's private guard, and raided his palace. I rushed through his office door, only to be ambushed by his wife. In my dying moments, I felt the whole palace explode, and my life winked out. I killed this one, and rushed through the timegate with the others. Cass cleansed us, and Time began to shift. "WHAT'S HAPPENING!?" shouted Atheon.

Cass went to the middle, set its force field around us, and I said, "SHOOT HIM DOWN!" Shin kept pulling out her Golden Gun and kept firing 3 shots per summon. I would occasionally jump out and lob my Nova Bombs at Atheon, followed by Jess, who would do the same thing, and Rasputin would jump out to fire his rockets. In between jumps and Golden Guns, we used our Primaries to fire on Atheon's chest. Every shot that it took, The Glass Throne would begin to crack and break apart. We kept this up for 30 seconds, then the Aegis disappeared, and we were sent back to the past again, this time with Jess instead of Cass.

We shouted, "PAST!" into the intercom. Jess took the Aegis, the first Oracle appeared, this time with Shin's past.

I saw a little girl whose home was ravaged by war, and left for Earth with her family to escape Virixas's iron grip. We killed the first one, and the second one came up. This one with a scene of Shin and Jess as Guardians, with a mission to release the Queen's Harbingers on the Wolves' fleet stationed in a cluster of asteroids. With the permission of Mara Sov, Shin unleashed the Harbingers on the sleeping House of Wolves. My jaw dropped as I destroyed the second Oracle. The Third came up with a different scene. This one took place on Venus: Shin, Jess, and Leviathan ascended the Vex Citadel to capture the rabid Skolas, the Wolf Baron who managed to evade the Queen's grasp. They did so, by killing off the Fallen that came from the past, and chopping off 2 of Skolas's 4 arms, as well as burning his cloak and mask. The scene changed again as I killed the third Oracle, and the last one appeared to take its place. Shin, Jess, and Leviathan would go back to the Queen, only to find her usurping brother at the throne. Uldren said, "Now begins the reign of the Awoken!"

Shin protested, "But the City is alright on its own! Why do you want to rule it with an iron fist? Can't you negotiate?"

Uldren raised his sidearm, aimed it at the Guardians and said, "Are those going to be your last words?"

Within a split-second, Shin Malphur pulled out her Last Word, engulfed it in flames, and fired three rounds into Uldren's chest, melting him. She then said, "Yours, not mine." The Last Word disappeared from her grasp, and she kept asking, "Where is it? WHERE IS IT!?" Jess understood only half of it, but left on her own ship without saying a word. We killed the Fourth Oracle, and ran through the gate.

Jess cleansed us, Time shifted again, and everyone went to the middle. Rasputin deployed his Ward of Dawn with Weapons of Light, Jess deployed the force field, Shin cried out, "DESTROY HIM!" and the rest of us dealt damage to Time's Conflux. Cass would occasionally jump out to fire two rockets from her Gjallarhorn, I would jump out to lob my Nova Bomb, and Shin kept firing from her Golden Gun. Once again, after 30 seconds, we ran to get cover.

This time, Rasputin replaced Jess to accompany us. He took the Aegis, we shouted, "FUTURE!" and the first Oracle appeared with a scene change. It depicted us on a Dreadnaught, killing off Hive generals, ripping apart their fortress from the inside out. All of us were happy in the end. We destroyed this Oracle, and another one displayed a prelude to something different: The Weapons of Sorrow, all lined in a row, waiting to destroy us. This Oracle was also destroyed and replaced. The next one had a skewed vision: It was our team, divided amongst ourselves, laying claims to these Weapons, willing to kill for them. _No! I would NEVER do that!_ After killing this Oracle, the last one appeared, revealing the City in ruins on a lifeless rock, and all of the stars in the Universe were dead. _NO! I WON'T LET THIS HAPPEN!_ I ripped apart the last Oracle, we exited the gate, Rasputin cleansed us, and deployed the force field in the middle.

Cass went first, setting down her Ward with Weapons, then Shin, repeatedly using her Golden Gun, then Jess, and finally myself. We threw everything we had at Atheon, bullets, grenades, supers, etc. Time's Conflux began to shatter, Rasputin told everyone to get in the Ward, and he fired a Bolt of Light at him, then slammed down his Fist of Havoc, and Cass did the same. Jess and I lobbed our Nova Bombs, crippling the Glass Minotaur, leaving Shin to finish him off with both her Golden Gun and Arc Blade. Atheon's Radiolaria was ignited with Shin's last shot. He screamed, "THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE! HOW IS THE VAULT BEING UNDONE?!" The Glass Throne began to fall apart, Atheon exploded into shards of glass, the Glass Throne following it. The Sanctum fell silent.

The glass shards turned into fluid, and weaved themselves through Shin's Rocket Launcher (turning it into the Hezen Vengeance), her extra Hand Cannon (now called the Fatebringer), my Machine Gun and extra Scout Rifle (which I dubbed the Corrective Measure and Vision of Confluence), and Cass's Auto Rifle (Atheon's Epilogue). The remaining glass fluid wove itself together, creating a golden Fusion Rifle that fires a single bolt with every trigger. I took this weapon, known as the Vex Mythoclast.

But there was no celebration this time. Instead, we had a long moment of silence for Charlemagne and Pahanin. Even though he was an Exo, I could've sworn that Rasputin began to cry. Shin handed Fatebringer to Jess. I gave the Vision to Rasputin. Cass, Jess, and Rasputin returned to orbit.

Shin pulled me aside. "So, what we saw in the past, you hid that from me?"

I nodded.

"Why?"

I said, "Because I killed a lot of people that day, by setting off a chain reaction of raw chaos. In the end, I destroyed my home."

"Not like there was much of it."

"Yeah, but in my mind, I'm still a killer with a uniform."

She tried to comfort me. "I destroyed 3 Fallen Houses, assassinated their Kells and Archons, even blew up some Primes." I looked down. She lifted my head back up. "The only thing we can do now is make sure that Atheon's Future cannot happen in any way, shape, or form."

I looked into her eyes and I knew that she was right. Relationship or not, I needed to trust her if we're going to prevent this future. "Alright then. Once more and onto the breach." We returned to the ship.

* * *

Skolas waited in his chains. He waited for someone to listen. He waited in the Prison of Elders, where Paladins and Guardians mock and scorn him. But he had so much knowledge about the Nine, the Darkness, its plans, Crota, and Oryx.


	24. The Aftermath

THE AFTERMATH

The Dark Lord clinched his fist. "WHAT HAPPENED?" he asked Xylar.

The Timeless didn't know how to respond. "T-the G-g-glass Th-th-th-throne w-w-was sh-sh-sh-sh-shattered, sir."

The Dark Lord flew into a fit of rage, tearing apart his throne. "I TRUSTED YOUR WILLINGNESS TO DESTROY TIME, AND YOU JUST HAD TO LET THOSE GUARDIANS INSIDE YOUR VAULT OF GLASS!" Then he cried out, "ORYX!"

The Hive god stepped out of the shadows. "Yes, master?"

"RESURRECT YOUR SON, NOW!"

Oryx left immediately. He didn't want to anger The Dark Lord like Xylar did.

* * *

We came back to the Tower after our Raid into the Vault of Glass, expecting either a welcoming party or nothing at all. Instead, the Vanguard, The Speaker, and the three Factions' leaders stood in front of us, judging us. Commander Zavala was the first to speak. "What the Hellmouth did you do!?"

I was stunned. I didn't know what to say. Cass stepped forward and said excitedly, "We shut down the Vault of Glass and restored Time!"

Ikora Rey was the next to speak. "You do realize that because of your actions, the Hive have made an alliance with the Vex, right?" Our jaws dropped to the floor.

Zavala added, "No one authorized this, absolutely no one."

"But Time was surging, we had 24 hours to keep our existence away from the Vex," argued Jess.

New Monarchy's Executor Hideo mentioned, "If you'd just follow the rules-"

Lakshmi-2 from Future War Cult argued, "I felt the surge of Time as well. These Guardians..."

"...had NO AUTHORITY!" shouted Hideo.

Arach Jalal stepped towards us and said, "Remember, you are always welcome in Dead Orbit. Great work guys!" He left for his post in the Tower.

The argument had spread to even the Vanguard and the Speaker, and soon enough, everyone except for Cayde-6 was shouting. He simply walked over to us and spoke. "Listen, I know that I'm supposed to give you a lecture on what you did..." I turned away, I couldn't bear another wrenching talk. The Hunter Vanguard continued, "...but who am I kidding? You did great, kid!" He addressed the Fireteam, "Come on guys! I'm buying drinks for all of you!" That was sure to lift everyone's spirits.

* * *

Oryx entered Crota's Throne World, and stood before the Oversoul. "CROTA!" he commanded, "RISE UP AND DESTROY THE EARTH!"

The Oversoul pulsed, and began to glow green. The Hive god took his sword, and chopped down the upside down arch, leaving the pieces to be scattered across the room. _Now for Ir Yut to begin her Liturgy of Ruin._

* * *

After everyone had their Arnold Palmers (which I had to describe to the bartender), Rasputin told Cayde about Charlemagne and Pahanin, and how they were lost in the Vault. Cayde ordered another round, said, "To Charlemagne and Pahanin," and drank.

We said, "Here, here!" and followed suit.

Eris rushed in with Omar. She shouted, "HE'S RISING AGAIN!"

Everyone rose from their seats. Cayde was stern with his voice. "What madness is this, Eris?"

Omar said, "I don't know what happened, but Eris claims that Crota is rising again, this time without a soulstone!"

Our eyes widened with shock and confusion. "WHAT? HOW?"

Eris said, "HE HAS DONE IT!"

I thought about this, then asked Shin if Skolas was employed by the Darkness. Her response was, "Probably." I was determined to find out something leading to Crota's rising. I needed to see Skolas.

* * *

Variks waited in the Reef's Vestian Outpost. He was tired of the Brotherhood of Osiris and their rituals. He was bored with watching Petra Venj, the Queen's Wrath, sending scouts to the Jovians. If only there was something new, something refreshing, something that he could challenge, and someone to talk to. If only...

As if out of nowhere, three Guardians showed up, and ran straight to him. Variks greeted them. "Welcome, Guardians. Come to Prison of Elders, be rewarded, yes?"

* * *

I answered, "No, we don't have much time. Crota is rising, and we need to speak to Skolas."

Variks hissed, "Skolas is rabid, dangerous. Will lead you there, cannot guarantee safety." He handed us the coordinates to the Prison, and directed us to Skolas in an open space.

The rabid Wolf Baron's two arms were wrapped in chains, his mask was half melted and fused to his head, and he looked like he was close to starving. When Skolas saw Shin, he flew into a fit of rage, only to be stopped by the short chains. He said, "Come to kill?"

"No," I reaffirmed, "We need to know how Crota is rising, and why now."

Skolas said nothing.

"You possess knowledge as to how the Darkness does this, and you will tell us."

"Or what?" bickered the Baron. "Guardians are all the same, Ghoul or Recruit. Take what isn't yours, and grind it into pulp. You are just as dark as the rest of us!"

Shin lunged forward with her Arc Blade, and forced it to Skolas's neck. "Last chance! Tell us, or die!"

Skolas trembled. "Fine. Crota can be summoned, only by Oryx. He wants your City to be Crota's cocoon." He hissed, and Shin backed away, sheathing her knife. We turned to leave, until The Baron added, "Save useless City, if you must. But, beware of the Great Machine. Treacherous."

I stopped, and without turning, I said, "I don't know what you're saying, but we're out of here all the same."

Skolas shouted, "4 HOURS!"


	25. Countdown to Destruction

COUNTDOWN TO DESTRUCTION

We locked up on our way out, and left immediately for the Tower. There, we joined Cass, Jess, and Omar in Shin's room, and Eris laid out the sketch of Crota's lair, explaining who Crota was, and how we were going to kill him.

* * *

Crota was created millennia ago, when the Universe was still forming. Oryx took the bone of a Leviathan, the marrow of an Ahamkara, and the blood of a worm. He mixed all of these together, along with some necromancy, and created his first Knight: The Hive Prince. As Oryx waged his wars, Crota would be on the front lines, commanding the Hive Armies alongside his aunt, Xivu Arath. He would destroy every moon and planet that stood in the way of his doctrine: Sword-Logic. Crota would dedicate himself to this Logic, cutting down all he can, until someone kills him. When he made a move on the Vex realm, his sisters, Ir Anuk and Ir Halak, sealed him in, and Oryx used this opportunity to challenge his son: Destroy the Vex and Ascend, or die trying. Crota would do more than just destroy, he would remake that world in his own image. He rose, and will continue to rise unless we stop him.

* * *

"Crota's Lair is hidden deep within the core of our moon. In there lies the Son of Oryx, Bane of Earth, and Eater of Hope, the one who mercilessly destroyed 30 worlds and transformed them for the Hive. The only way to get into his Netherworld is to descend into the Hellmouth, straight through the center. The bridge that you summon will guide you there. Your descent will lead you to the Abyss, where the Darkness will weigh you down. Follow the Lights. After the abyss, you'll arrive in his world. Use the Ascendant Sword, but beware of the Totems! Cross the Bridge, kill the Gatekeeper, and destroy the Ogres. Enter his throne, kill his Deathsinger, summon the Prince, and end him!" Eris finished.

"Can you come with us? We need you."

She shook her head. "The last time I was there, the Hive managed to control me until I escaped. That's why I wear this bandana."

"I'll go in her stead," said Omar.

"Why?" I asked, confused by his words, "We already lost one Hunter."

"I know that, and I'm willing to give up my life just to save this City from destruction."

Cass looked at Omar. "Why are you so..."

"...Human?" he finished. Then he took off his helmet, revealing an Exo face. "Because, right now, I'm not."

"Alright then," I said, "Let's move! We've only got 4 hours!"

"THREE hours!" Eris corrected, "HURRY!"

We left immediately for the Hellmouth.

* * *

Crota felt an urge to move out of his Oversoul, but realized that he couldn't because of the destroyed arch. _The Last City, here I come!_


	26. Welcome to Hell

WELCOME TO HELL

 **2 Hours remaining**

We touched down on the Hellmouth, this time opposite to the ring. We ran forward to the plate, and waited for the bridge to form. Shin reloaded her Hawkmoon and Thorn. Rasputin loaded and pumped his Invective. Cass readied her Gjallarhorn. Jess armed her Fatebringer, and rested the Ice Breaker on her back. I set up my Mythoclast.

Omar held a unique firearm in his hand, a Pulse Rifle covered in blood, which he called the Red Death. "They called it a 'Guardian Killer'," he gloated, "but I robbed this off of a Hunter in the Crucible. He seemed eager to part with it." I made sure to keep my distance.

Jess asked me, "Why do you want Shin?"

"What?"

"Do you want to seduce her or-"

I had to reassure her that I don't want to seduce or harm anyone. "NO! No, no, no, I think you're mistaking me for someone else."

"Tell the truth!"

"I AM!" I reaffirmed, "I'm Asexual, just like you."

Jess was stunned. "How-"

"I could tell that you're in a relationship with Cass, but you don't want to take it too far. I also know that you'd never discuss nor reveal it to anyone else." I paused then said, "You're still concerned for your sister, and that's okay. I just want to let you know that I would never harm Shin, ever."

Jess nodded and said, "Okay, I believe you, but cross either of us, and you'll die."

I replied with, "Thank you," just as the bridge formed. One by one, we descended into the Pit.

The Abyss was dark, so dark that you couldn't see what was in front of you, nor reach it in time. The only things that had any light at all were the lamps: Medium-sized pillars that began to glow when you touch them, but explode after a long time. The lamps could relieve us from our Weight of Darkness, and they were strung in a long, meandering path.

We landed on the ground, so hard that it was enough to break our bones. But since we were Guardians, our bodies were able to repair and mend themselves faster than before. We stood up in a small lighted circle. _'Follow the Lights!'_ Eris's words echoed inside my head. I turned to my right, and found the first lamp. I led the team to the first lamp, where we felt lighter for a while, but had to run away from the Thrall, and we ran to the next lamp. The horde began to grow. At the third lamp, I turned around, and fired the Mythoclast at the Thrall, melting the current horde. _I'm keeping this!_ We left for the fourth lamp, just as the new Thrall horde began to form.

Rasputin turned around at the fifth lamp, and fired his Eidolon Ally upon the horde. More Thralls came, and we continued running. The Weight of Darkness began weighing down on us, the Thrall were catching up. We reached the next lamp, and we cleaned up our tail. Thrall were coming from the front. We jumped over them, the horde began to build up, stringing a few more lamps, killing the Thrall, passing the Knights, and eventually reaching another bridge that needs to be summoned. I stepped on the plate, lightened my Weight, and all of us waited on a couple of rocks. The Ogre charged into battle alongside the Thrall. Shin sniped the Ogre down, then used both the Hawkmoon and the Thorn on the Thrall that came from the deep, and I helped her out with my Mythoclast and Praetorian Foil. Ras just lost it, and angrily began tearing up Thrall left and right, while everyone else just stood around, shooting at whatever wasn't already claimed. The bridge appeared, and we ran across to the other side. The massive tunnel ended with a brilliant light, and we ran into it, entering Crota's Neither Realm.

 **1 Hour remaining**

The Realm was filled with different shades of green, and was made out of rock, Hadium, and bone marrow, and carved out in wretched circles. The first section consisted of two small areas that were connected by a flaming bridge that can only be summoned by standing on one of the plates. On both sides are a pair of Annihilator Totems, which will activate if that side's plate is active. The second section was the palace itself, which was circular and had two floors, the second of which was mostly a pair of arc bridges connecting the Deathsinger's room to Crota's throne. The whole place looked like a raw Minas Morgul or an evil Emerald City.

We entered in the back of the first section, looking to cross the chasm over to the other side, and ran down to the plate. A Swordbearer appeared in the room behind us, Thrall crawled up from the edges. I said, "We need to keep the Totems sedated!" Omar and Cass each went to a Totem. Shin killed the first Swordbearer, and took the Ascendant Sword. I stood on the plate, and the bridge began to form. After a few seconds, and bagging a few more kills, the bridge was formed, and Shin crossed quickly. She then killed the Hive Gatekeeper, slicing him in half.

Rasputin was brutal with his Swordbearer, stealing the Sword first, then decapitating the orange Knight, and finally crossing the chasm, doing the same thing to the Gatekeeper. He tossed both Swords to us. Jess and I drew them into our palms, gently. She crossed, killed one of the two Wizards on the other side, held down the plate, then I crossed, and went straight for the other Wizard. Moments later, Cass and Omar killed their Knights, stole the swords, and crossed, just in time for the Ogres. Rasputin, Jess, and Cass took the right side, while Shin, Omar, and I took the left.

The Warmind used his Fist of Havoc on his Ogre, crushing its body and scattering its limbs, while Cass and Jess provided him with cover. Omar and Shin sniped the Ogre, and I lobbed my Nova Bomb and Scatter Grenade at it, before finishing it off with the Foil. The central door opened, Hive marrow floated near Rasputin's second Auto Rifle, and attached to it, transforming it into the Abyss Defiant. Rasputin led the charge into the curved hallway, and Cass fired her Gjallarhorn rockets into the Shrikers that blocked our path with Necro-walls. Charging forward, we fell through a hole, and into the small foyer before the Throne room.

As soon as we entered the second section, two Knights stood up, and ran towards us, cleavers in hand. We jumped over their heads, and into the main floor. Ir Yut was in her own room, preparing her song near the Summoning Crystal. We killed most of the Acolytes, and split into teams of three. Cass, Jess, and Omar climbed up the stairs on the right side, leading up to its bridge and room before the Deathsinger. They went inside, killed the Wizard that came out, and destroyed the Shrieker. After leaving they began massacring the Acolytes and Knights that were clustered together. Meanwhile, Shin, Ras, and I climbed the stairs on the left side, and went into the room. Rasputin jumped up, met the Wizard at her height, and tore her apart with his bare hands. The Shrieker opened, and Shin sniped it. We escaped from its death-blast, and mowed down the Acolytes that stood outside.

Ir Yut began to scream, our vision began to fade, all of us ran back inside, and met up in the Deathsinger's room. There, we plugged our ears, charged on Ir Yut, and opened fire on her. She screamed louder, everyone collapsed on their knees. I threw a Fusion Grenade, which attracted to her cloak, and melted her. She screamed, "CROTA!" as she was vaporized.

After cleaning up the whole place of Acolytes and Knights, all of us met in the room again. Outside, on the throne, a familiar southern voice asked, "Shin?"

We turned around, Shin shouted, "Leviathan!" and ran towards him. "How did you escape?"

"I...found another Exo, and escaped in this body."

I walked up to him. "What are you doing here?"

"I just came to say hello. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"No, but...the dead just can't come back to life."

"Said the Warlock who self-resurrected himself in the Black Garden," he blurted.

"Says the A.I. who has died 3 times already. Besides, how would you know about the Black Garden?"

"Because we made an alliance with the Vex!" said another voice, raspy and bitter.

I turned to see who it was. "Dredgen Yor," I said with disgust. The corrupted Hunter stood on the right bridge.

"Your precious city will surely fall!" This voice was wild, but collected and accurate, and coming from the left bridge.

Omar looked to see who it was. "Toland? Brother?" Toland turned around. "It's me!" cryed Omar, "How have you been?"

Toland merely lifted his hand, lifted Omar and Cass with magic, and pinned them by the neck to the Crystal in mid-air, Dredgen did the same to Jess and Rasputin, and Leviathan pinned Shin and myself against the Crystal. The Necro-fields closed off the Crystal room from the rest of the Throne room. Acolytes and Knights started forming in the adjacent rooms. The three vessels spoke with one voice as they lifted the arch pieces. "I AM FAMINE." They began lining the pieces, "I'M THE PLAGUE." The final Pieces lined up, and the image of Crota appeared between them, "I AM CROTA!" The pieces mashed together, and Crota, the Son of Oryx, spawned at his throne and yelled, "I AM THE LIGHT'S BANE!"

We were still pinned when the Necro-fields dropped and the Acolytes opened fire. Rasputin popped his Ward of Dawn, and all of us were protected for a while. Omar said, "Crota can only be killed with an Ascendant Sword, but you'll have to weaken him first."

That's when I realized, "The Vessels! Kill one, get as many strikes into the Son of Oryx as we can, rinse and repeat for two more times, and that's it!"

Cass pointed out, "But we still need to get down!"

"You're right!" I said, "Jess, on three, we'll make the vessels lose their focus, and all of us will drop to the floor," then to the rest, "when that happens, all of us will go to town on these Acolytes and Knights."

Everyone, except for Ras and Shin, were confused. "What do mean by that?"

I sighed and said, "Just kill the Hive." I straightened my voice, "One," we reached for our primary weapons, "Two," Jess and I invaded the vessels' minds, "THREE!" We dropped down, and fired upon the Acolytes. Jess and I had to at least suspend the vessels' powers inside their heads, so that everyone else could do their jobs. Keeping one vessel's powers away from us was easy, but three was just too much to bear.

Once we cleared the rooms, all of us went outside, and stood on the left plate, just as Omar killed a Swordbearer and took its sword. The Hunter went for Dredgen, the vessel fought back with an elongated blade, but Shin killed Dredgen just in time, saying, "Your last words, not mine." Crota fell to his knees, Omar ran over to the Prince, and struck three times, before turning around and losing the Sword. _One down, two to go._ Toland raised his hand again, I tried to block his grasp before it fell on Omar, but failed. Omar was lifted by the throat, brought closer to Toland. "Brother," Omar coughed, "please..."

"Your brother is dead, he died a long time ago." Toland choked the life out of Omar, then tossed him Crota, who threw him into the Oversoul. It expanded, and we fired everything we had to bring it down. Before we could decide who would replace Omar, Rasputin tackled Toland to the ground. "Wait, I'm back! I'M BACK!"

The Warmind growled, "I don't believe corrupted Guardians," and crushed his skull between his palms. The rest of us were confused, shocked, and frozen by the Warmind's actions. Rasputin took another Sword, struck Crota three times, and waited for him to rise again. Crota brought down his Doombringer upon Rasputin. I closed my eyes. But Rasputin wasn't killed. Instead, he caught the blade with his two hands, gripped the edge, and yanked it out of the Hive Prince's hands.

I shouted, "Rasputin! Stop!" but he never listened. The Warmind held Doombringer by the handle, he charged at Leviathan, attacking with every swipe of the Sword, before plunging it into Leviathan's chest, and then cutting him in half. "STOP!" I shouted again, to no avail. Crota was out of breath, his last vessel was destroyed, and now The Warmind of Earth, the one he sent Omnigul to kill, charged at him with Doombringer. "Please," the Prince said weakly, "You don't understand."

"Oh, I think we do," snapped Ras. "You planned on coming back to Earth to destroy the world! You told Omnigul to set my bunker ablaze! You wanted all of this to happen, and now, you will die!"

The Hive Prince arose, "ARE THOSE GOING TO BE YOUR LAST WORDS?" His Oversoul expanded.

I tried to bring my friend back from vengeance, "RAS!" Rasputin lifted himself to meet Crota's head, and with one horizontal slice, he decapitated the Son of Oryx. The Oversoul exploded, and the arch dissolved. The Warmind cackled, "Yours, not mine."

Doombringer shrank down into a small Crux, one that attached itself to the Eidolon Ally, transforming it into the Necrochasm. Everyone rushed over to the Warmind. Jess was the first to question him. "Why would you do that?"

He murmured, "No more pain."

Cass stepped in, "How could you do this? Brutally murder three Guardians and a Hive Prince, why?"

"No more pain." His voice grew louder.

Shin asked, "Do you realize what you've done?"

His voice was defiant, "No more pain!"

I finished the interview with, "Was all of this for Charlemagne? Because he isn't coming back!"

Rasputin grabbed me by the throat and shouted, "NO MORE PAIN!" He threw me halfway across the room.

I landed with a 'THUD!' and couldn't get up for a while. Shin ran over to help me to my feet. Rasputin jumped down, and walked towards me. I coughed, "Ras, remember me? It's your old pal, Max." The Warmind grunted and didn't break his focus.

Cass landed between us, and fought off Rasputin for a while, before realizing that the Necrochasm was glowing green, the same green that both the Thorn and Bad Juju make. She grabbed the weapon, and broke it into two pieces, dissolving it. Ras fainted. Cass helped Shin out. "What do we do now?"

"I don't know," said the Hunter.

I piped up, rather weak, "We recover, that's what. Take Rasputin to the Infirmary, and make sure that he recuperates. I need to heal my back for the time being, and the musky Hive scent doesn't help at all. As for you girls, you've got all the free time in the world. I don't need to tell you what to do."

Shin said, "What about you?"

"I'll be fine, so long as I can watch Doctor Who." Cass swapped places with Jess, then carried Ras over her shoulder, and we teleported ourselves onto our ship.

* * *

Oryx sat on his throne. He felt an emptiness in one of his worlds. Ecthar, the Sword of Oryx, approached the Hive god. "Sir," he said, "We a loss in our ranks."

Oryx looked at his left-hand man. "Explain."

"One of our Ascendants has been killed in his Throne World," gulped Ecthar.

"So, his defences are not as well-placed or conceived."

Ecthar felt a tremble in his voice, "It was c-c-" the words failed him.

Oryx demanded, "Who was killed?"

"C-c-c-cr-cro-Crota."

Oryx stood abruptly. "HOW?" he shouted.

Ecthar begged, "Six Guardians entered his Netherrealm and decapitated him on the spot! I don't know how they did it!"

Oryx growled, and three Knights entered the room. Ecthar scampered out of their way. The Knights bowed before their master, their god. Oryx summoned the Darkness into his right hand, and stretched out towards the Knights. The Darkness lept onto their skulls, weaving into their bodies, and reaching into even Ecthar. The Hive god bellowed, "I WILL RAISE AN ARMY, ONE DEDICATED TO MY GOALS ALONE, FOR I AM THEIR KING!" The Knights, now surging with Darkness from the inside out, stood before Oryx, The Taken King. "PREPARE THE DREADNAUGHT! WE FLY FOR THE END OF EARTH AND ITS PRECIOUS GUARDIANS!"


	27. Oryx Arrives

ORYX ARRIVES

Mara Sov stood in her own Ketch. Her fleet charged on Oryx's in the Rings of Saturn. _"_ _My hidden friend,"_ she spoke telepathically, _"_ _Oryx has arrived, and he threatens all of us, even the Reef. I, the Awoken Queen, have pledged to stop this monster."_ The crows, led by Yasmin Eld, attacked the ships surrounding Oryx's Dreadnaught. The Queen of the Reef weighed the decision of releasing her Harbingers upon the huge battle cruiser. She turned to her Techeun Witches, and nodded. The path was clear. The Witches opened a rift, and Mara summoned 5 orbs of plasma through that rift, and launched them at the Dreadnaught. The orbs knocked out anything that stood in their way, destroying rocks, ice, and Hive ships, before reaching their target, striking its engines and hull.

Oryx loomed in his Altar. _Mara Sov. The monarch who couldn't lead her people to victory._ He raised his sword, Willbreaker, and thrusted it into a plate. The Dreadnaught charged its weapon, and released one massive, spherical blast, crushing all that stood in its way, and creating a cavity in the Rings.

Mara braced for impact. _"Guide them. It's all up to you now."_ The blast tore through the Ketch.

* * *

3 days later

"Max, Shin, Ras, this is Commander Zavala. The Cabal are blasting a signal across the Cosmos, open to anyone, and originating from Phobos. If they're sending this, it could be..."

"...A trap or a distress call," I finished, "We're checking their base just in case."

"Good luck."

We landed on Phobos. 3 months ago, we raided Crota's realm and assassinated the Son of Oryx. Yet, something didn't feel right. I loaded my Mythoclast, Rasputin checked his Invective, and Shin prepped her Hawkmoon and Thorn. We trekked over a hill, until we could see the Cabal Skyburners' base. Suddenly, there was an explosion that tore up the entire back door. Legionaries groaned as they passed away on the ground. We ran through the door, and entered the base.

Eris spoke through the intercom. "A powerful presence has drawn us here, I can feel it."

"Eris! How's it been?"

In 3 months, I taught the whole Tower about the Before, and how we used to speak back then. Turns out, everyone could learn about Netflix, Arrow, Sherlock, and the rest of our history in just a few weeks. One month after the lessons, The Hunters were bingeing on spy and Wild West movies, The Titans were caught up in shows like Person of Interest and Blue Bloods, and The Warlocks began their own fandoms in everything else. Needless to say, I'm proud of my peers.

Eris, however, couldn't be swayed by these teachings, so I wasn't surprised when she said, "Aside from the fact that you're walking into a death trap, I'd say things are fine."

 _Even though she rejects my lessons, she still uses sarcasm._ "I missed you too, Eris." I could hear the Vanguard laughing from the intercom. Zavala fought himself to keep a straight face, Ikora had to hide hers, and Cayde didn't even try.

We ran into the next room, where something made descending scream. Shin asked, "What the Hell was that?!"

Eris cried, "Fingertips on the SURFACE OF MY MIND!"

"Thank you for your input!" shouted Rasputin.

After running through a few hallways, we found a Centurion wailing, just as he was pulled through a dark rift. The lights began to spark. A Cabal dropship fell through a shaft, dragging a Legionary down with it. Approaching the next room, Eris said, "The whispers are louder! And they speak a word, a name!"

We entered the large circular room, with a floor on the first level, and a ringed floor on the second, with ramps connecting the two. We heard an ear-piercing screech, and a massive black and white image of a Hive with horizontal horns appeared. "HE IS HERE!" screamed Eris.

The image boomed, "MAX PRODIGY!"

"Yes?" I replied.

"YOU HAVE BEEN FOUND GUILTY!"

"You've got to be more specific with the charges."

"YOU KILLED MY SON!"

"Aha!" I realized, "You must be Oryx! Well, if this isn't a welcoming party, then-"

"AND **I** WILL TAKE **YOU!** " The image exploded into a giant dark Knight, 5 dark Phalanxes and 10 dark Psions, all of which had singular eyes. The Psions divided into identical copies of each other, the Phalanxes could launch us halfway across the room with their shields, and the Knight spat fire from his eye. We scattered.

I threw my Firebolt Grenade at the Psions, only for them to divide just as they were killed. I had to engulf myself in Radiance just to lob more Grenades and ignite these new Taken. Rasputin faced all of the Phalanxes. He tried his Fist of Havoc, only for him to be launched into the ceiling, and fall flat on his stomach. Shin pulled out her Arc Blade and Golden Gun. She charged at her foe, only for her to run away from the Knight's fire. She decided to fire all three Golden shots at the Knight, then plowed through the Phalanxes with her Blade. All of us finished off the Knight with our Primary Weapons, and Eris said, "We have seen His face, it was He who took the Cabal and twisted them into these beasts, these Taken."

Zavala was through with this, "Get out of there, guys!"

"If we had more time..." I began.

"Forget the Base!" shouted the Titan Vanguard, "The entire system is crawling with this Taken surge! Get back to the Tower, and we'll discuss battle strategies then."

"Roger that!" We ran out through another door, facing Taken and Cabal wherever we went. We shot down anything that stood in our way, and sprinted through another small hallway, leading outside.

Parts of the base began to crumble. A Cabal Battleship began to take off, and sailed away from the base at alarming speeds. I saw our Jumpship led across the base. We pressed forward, down to the lower levels. 2 Taken Phalanxes stood on the other side of a chasm. We killed them, then proceeded to run past the remaining Cabal and the ever-growing Taken forces, and straight to our ship. As soon as we could, we left Phobos for our home.

* * *

Hours later, a solidified silhouette of Oryx appeared on the base. It looked around for any remaining Cabal, but couldn't find any. _Good._ It turned to the Taken Cabal forces. They bowed before their new commander. "Go to the planets, and spread this new doctrine among your enemies and old kin. Give no mercy," and it disappeared.

Oryx was back in Alter, regaining his consciousness after controlling one of his Echoes. Ecthar, now Taken, stood before the might of his King. "Do you want to go forward with this mission?"

"I will avenge my son, one way or another!" replied Oryx.

"You need to focus on the Final Shape."

"I am!" The Taken King straightened his back. "These Taken are that Shape. To have the Shape is one thing, to be it is another, but to warp others into that Shape, that is true power!" He turned to Ecthar. "Send the Echoes among the planets! I will take them ALL!"


	28. Power Grab

POWER GRAB

We entered the Vanguard room, late at night. The Warlock Vanguard stood opposite to the other two Vanguards. Ikora said, "My contacts in the Jovians noticed this," she turned on a mini projector, revealing a 3-D image of a rhombus prism with two circles on the left and right sides.

Zavala and Cayde looked at it. "What is it?" asked the Hunter Vanguard.

"A Dreadnaught." Ikora Rey continued, "The Praxic Warlocks believe that this is the source of the Hive and this new Threat."

"Taken!" interrupted Eris Morn, "They are Taken!"

Zavala turned to Crota's Bane. "Whatever they are, they turned Cabal against Cabal, and wiped out their base in minutes!"

"Until we more about this 'Taken Surge' and who they answer to-"

Eris launched her rock into the projection. "They answer to Oryx!" she shouted. Eris wasn't willing to keep reminding these fools about what and who we saw.

"That's lovely, Eris," said Cayde, "traumatizing my map with your rock!"

Eris continued, "When these Guardians killed Crota, the whispers inside my head disappeared. They are louder than before because Oryx has arrived." She strafed around the table, focusing on her enchantment orb.

Ikora was confused, "But why fight the Cabal?"

Eris stared at her rock, stopping on the left side of Ikora. "Not fighting, Taking! Twisting their goals, strengths, and weaknesses until they become slaves to Oryx's will." Cayde took the rock and juggled it, irritating Crota's Bane.

Rasputin blurted, "So we diminish his armies, and attack him when the enemy is weakened."

Eris argued, "Whatever you kill, Oryx will replace."

I stepped in, "The Dreadnaught, how do we infiltrate that fortress?"

Shin finished with, "Without ending up like the Awoken?"

Cayde caught the rock. "I need to go, uh, see about a ship." He tossed the rock away, only for Eris to bring it back to her hand with a flick of her wrist.

Zavala turned and barked, "Cayde! We're not finished here!"

"I know, that's why I'm leaving."

Shin stopped him just in time. "Cayde!" The Exo Vanguard turned to The Hunter. She continued, "With our current powers, We were barely surviving against the Taken. And this was on Phobos! Imagine if this happened-"

"-on a larger scale," Cayde finished. His face turned grim. "There is a power that staggers your foes, but Hunters have 'banned' it due to its nature." He leads Shin away, but I could hear, "I know of a certain Hunter named Tevis. He's not kind, but he's the only one I know who has this power. Plus, he owes me money," and then Cayde was inaudible.

Rasputin approached Zavala. The Commander said, "If you want to say the same to me, then you must know that there is a power. I don't know where it is, but I do know that it starts on Venus."

I walked to Ikora, and she said, "Yes, there is a power, but it is rare, and only a few have mastered it. Go to Mars, and look for the Conductive Mind. There is a strong storm brewing in Meridian Bay, and you don't want to miss it."

We walked out of the Vanguard room, through the Crucible hall, and into the Plaza. Shin told us, "We can't move as a Fireteam for these powers."

I nodded and said, "These powers we have to receive on our own." As soon as I said that, Rasputin started to experience his own case of cramps, and nearly fell down. Cass, who was standing near the Eververse vendor (that is the shop where Guardians can learn emotes of the Before and Golden Age), ran over to catch Rasputin. Every one of us asked, "'Are you alright?' 'Is something wrong?' 'Can we help you?'"

The Warmind shouted, "YES!" He toned down his voice after we stopped talking and helped him up. "Now, as much as I want to get my new powers, I need to recharge my batteries. Light and motivation are enough to keep me going, but at some point, I need to rest." He turned to Cass and said, "You need to go to Venus in my place. Follow the path, wherever it leads you." Jess ran out from the Hanger, saw what was going on, said, "If you guys are done patronizing him, I can take him to his room," lifted Rasputin over her shoulder, and carried him away.

Cass said, "See you soon, Jess!" and left at the drop of a hat.

Shin turned to me and said, "Well, I need to find Cayde's friend, wherever he is."

"Yeah," I replied, "and I've got to find this Storm on Mars. Until then..."

"I know. I'll see you later!" Shin teleported to her ship, and I teleported to mine.

* * *

Xylar overlooked his forces from his Headquarters. His top lieutenants were stationed on Venus and Mars, gathering the pure essences of the elements. _If the Vault didn't work, then I'll rework Time using the Void, the Sun, AND the Arc at the same time!_ He spoke through the Collective-Mind, "Harness the Powers, and bring them to me!"


	29. Stalker in the Shadows

STALKER IN THE SHADOWS

 _What does it mean to be a Hunter? I'd say it's where you belong. Warlocks live in the Libraries and Titans have their walls. But we Hunters belong in the wilds. Out there, you better have a sharp blade or fast gun to survive against the Darkness, because you never know if you're coming back. But there are a few that divert from the traditional Hunter 'This steak is mine, that scrap is yours.' These Hunters stabilize their foes, whether it is left for themselves or others. They take up a bow, draw from the Void, and fire away. They are rarely seen, but when they are, they are the most powerful Hunters the City has ever seen. They are the Nightstalkers._ -Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard

* * *

Shin arrived at the last section of Campus 9, right before the Endless Steppes, her back faced a disabled Vex Gate. Cayde spoke through the Intercom, "Tevis is one of the finest Nightstalkers this system has ever seen. We need him back in the Tower as soon as possible."

"Because he owes you cold hard cash." Shin advanced toward the passageway to the Steppes, all the while taking note of the Vex corpses covered in purple smoke. _A Nightstalker's trail, no doubt._

"Yeah, um...let's just stick to the mission," replied Cayde.

When Shin arrived at the Endless Steppes, a musky southern voice joined the other two Hunters on the intercom. "Can anyone hear me? I'm not on Venus anymore."

Cayde perked up. "Tevis! So glad to hear from you!"

"Cayde? Thank the Traveler I can't smell your breath. Listen, I think I'm in the Black Garden, and I need you to send someone to help."

"I sent a fellow Hunter to pick you up, she's at the Endless Steppes now."

"She'd better hurry."

Shin replied with, "Well, he's cheery today," as she walked down the first set of stairs, killing Vex Goblins and Harpies with her Hawkmoon and Thorn. Then she reached the bottom, followed a stream on the ground to the next set of stairs, where she climbed all the way up to the disabled Vex Gate, going to town on the Vex. She looked at the Gate and said, "Tevis, you fell through this?"

"Yes, and don't let it fool you." And just like that, the Gate revived itself, summoning Goblins and Hobgoblins at will. Shin backed away from the large gate, and started piling Vex bodies with her Hand Cannons. After a few rounds, Minotaurs started popping up with Goblins all over the Steppes. The Minotaurs charged towards the Hunter. She sniped the first six brutes, swapped to her Hawkmoon and Thorn, ran around to the base, and climbed again, killing the Goblins in her path.

The Gate surged again, this time bringing forth Harpies, Goblins, Hobs, and Minotaurs, all led by a giant purple Hydra encased in shadow. The Vacuum Mind said, "Your mission is dead, usurper!"

Shin screamed. She sniped the Hydra's eye a few times with Praedyth's Revenge, charged her Arc Blade and Golden Gun, sliced through the Vex, and fired all three Golden shots into the Hydra, melting it. "I'm better as an usurper than you are as a thief," said Shin, looking over the puddle of molten brass and Radiolaria. She ran back to the Gate, turned to her left and looked down. Shin holstered her weapons, and picked up a dead Ghost. "Tevis, I have your Ghost, but I can't enter through this Gate."

"Yeah, it picks and chooses whomever it swallows into the Garden."

Shin snapped her fingers and said, "The Valley of the Kings! It could still open for us! We still have a Gate Lord's Eye!"

"Then make it quick!" snapped Tevis, "I'm running out of Light, and the Vex are descending on me." Shin went to orbit, launched her ship into overdrive, landed on Mars, blazed through the Rusted Lands and Scablands on her Sparrow, and to the Valley of the Kings. She hopped off her hoverbike, ran into the giant Gate, and landed in the Pantheon in the Black Garden.

The Pantheon was a symmetrical Vex temple built out of stone, with an Atrium leading to two identical rooms on either side, and a hallway behind it, that stretches to each room. The stairs were placed symmetrically in accordance to the sides, and the whole structure felt like it was patterned. When Shin arrived, Cayde said, "Tevis is a cheat and a liar. AND he smells like a bunch of Thrall spit. But he's our cheat, and we can't lose his Void to the Vex." She pulled out her Ghost to scan the place for Tevis. _Great,_ she thought sarcastically, _He's on the other side of the map._ Shin ran through the first room, passed the Atrium, and reached the other side to find a dying Tevis. He said, "So, *cough* you're the Hunter who has come to bring me home." He tilted his head and coughed again, each one was louder than the last.

"Yes. Cayde misses you, ya know."

Tevis laughed and wheezed. "Cayde only cares about money, the guy is a debt collector, not a true Hunter." He reached into his pocket, pulled out a small purple orb, and managed to say, "I've kept this away from the Vex. I am already dead. But if you need to save anything, then save this bow." Shin took the orb, and it began to form itself into a Void Bow and Quiver. She strapped the Quiver on her back, lifted her new Bow, and fired an arrow into the sky. Tevis stared at the flying arrow, then turned his attention back to Shin. "You ARE a true Hunter." He laid back, and gave his final breath.

The Vex appeared out of nowhere, marching all over the Pantheon, some would even come close to Shin. In turn, the Hunter raised her bow, nocked a Void Arrow, and fired it at some of the Goblins, disintegrating one, and binding the rest to its anchor point. She threw her Spike Grenade, draining the Radiolaria out of the tethered Goblins. She ran into the Atrium, and faced a few Minotaurs. She fired an arrow at a Minotaur, binding and weaving itself into the robotic brute, and suppressing any other Vex that approached it. She killed those Vex with her smoke, intoxicating those that entered its cloud. More Minotaurs came onto the scene, firing their Torch Hammers. Shin fired more arrows at the brutes, immobilizing and killing them. A Gate Lord appeared on the scene, stomping on the ground. Shin threw her grenade and smoke, and fired 10 arrows into the Gate Lord's chest, all the while dodging its Torch Hammer bombs. With her last arrow, Shin disintegrated the Gate Lord, and the remaining Vex were dismantled on site.

Cayde spoke into the comms, "Shin? Are you there?"

"Yes, Cayde," she replied, "But, Tevis is down. I'm sorry."

The line was silent for a moment until, "Did you get my cash?"

Shin hesitated, then said, "No, he didn't have his wallet with him."

"Shame." Cayde cleared his throat. "In other news, did you get his bow?"

"Would we be talking if I didn't?"

"Good point. Come back to the Tower. I have a plan to invade Oryx's Dreadnaught."

* * *

Xylar watched the networks. The remaining Vex Goblins from the Sol Divisive from the Black Garden returned, battered and out of breath. "Report!" he demanded.

The Goblins all said, "We had a Guardian cornered and killed, but his Bow was passed onto another Hunter. We barely stood a chance against her."

Xylar growled, "And the Gate Lord?"

"He was atomized by said Hunter."

The Timeless Hydra screamed, "YOU LET HER ESCAPE!? WITH THE VOID TETHER!?" A pause, then he said, "GO TO THE BURNING SHRINE WITH THE APHIX INVASIVE, AND EXTINGUISH THE SUNBREAKERS' FORGE!"


	30. Breaker of the Stars

BREAKER OF THE STARS

 _What does it mean to be a Titan? As a Titan, you don't subject yourself to a Warlock's books or the Hunter's wilderness, you make them obey your will. You're a soldier, which means that you protect the City and its dreams, following orders from well-respected leaders and well-known goals. As a Titan, you are on the front lines of every battle, striking against the enemy or defending your allies. As a Titan, weapons are handy, but you are the primary tool in your arsenal. But there are those who believe in other tools, in other leaders. They are the ones who dare to break Titan Codexes in the name of the City and the Traveler. They harness the Forge, and wield sun-soaked hammers capable of breaking enemies from a distance, even the ones with shields. They are the Sunbreakers, and they yield to no one._ -Commander Zavala, Titan Vanguard

* * *

Cass touched down in the Ishtar Commons. The ground was misshapen by a Skiff, embedded in the middle of the battleground. Fallen were positioned on the left side, which led to the Ishtar Archives, while the Vex held their positions on the right side. Zavala said, "A legion of Sunbreakers were spotted near a Vex Gate. Follow them before they disappear." The Titan ran across to the right side, straight through the Vex. _What else do you think that I am doing, Commander?_ Cass ran down some stairs, and turned to her left. After the hallway, she entered the Ishtar labs, only to kill the Vex that guarded a Sunbreaker signal. She pulled out her Ghost, and it activated a speaker. "FALL BACK! FALL BACK!" shouted the signal. "Should've known Osiris...PROTECT THE FORGE! LOCK UP IF YOU'RE THE LAST ONE!"

"Osiris?" Zavala seemed puzzled, but traded that for firmness. "Nevermind that. Push forward, and find those Sunbreakers." Cass ran up the stairs, and into a smaller room. She destroyed 5 Vex with her Atheon's Epilogue, lifted herself up to the next platform, and pressed forward into Dig Site 4, killing Vex along the way. When she reached the site itself, Vex spawned onto the scene, with a giant orange Hydra, firing solar Torch Hammers, and cloaked in shadow. It said, "Your existence is an anomaly, killer!"

Cass charged at the Hydra, firing her Auto Rifle. The Fiery Mind retaliated, the Goblins marched towards the Titan. She swapped to her Gjallarhorn, waited for the Goblins to come closer, and when they did, Cass slammed the ground with her Fist of Havoc, and fired two rockets at the Hydra, damaging its spine and weapons. The Hydra hissed. A flaming hammer flew into the Hydra's eye, destroying it. The Sunbreaker stood near the lab entrance, whose voice was similar to that of the signal's. "Cassandra Razar?" asked the Sunbreaker.

Cass turned around to find the Sunbreaker clad in sun-baked armor, whose robotic face seemed human. She replied, "Yes?"

"My name is Lilavati-12. As Colonel of the Sunbreakers, I thank you for opening the channels." The Sunbreaker proceeded to the Conflux that the Hydra was protecting, hoping to reactivate the Gate.

Cass said, "Wait, Zavala told me to find you guys. He said that I needed to-"

Lilavati hissed, "Zavala? You want to be a Sunbreaker because Zavala told you so?" She laughed, "Did he say that we follow leaders that we barely understand?" The Exo Titan broke down in laughter, then straightened her voice, "Commander Ouros used to be the Titan Vanguard until Zavala showed up. He kept saying, 'Sunbreakers are mercenaries, they are outside the law.' Because of him, we were exiled to Mercury alongside Osiris. We trusted his judgement, until he decided to become 'one with the Vex.'"

"And you're trying to destroy Vex on Venus?"

"Or what remains of them," The Exo Titan finished. "We want to preserve the worlds as much as the Warlocks do. That's why we allied ourselves with Osiris, why we appear on different planets, to stop the Vex from transforming them into their machines." Lilavati paused. "You raided the Vault of Glass, right?"

Cass felt uneasy, "Yes?"

"You destroyed Atheon AND his Glass Throne, right?"

"Well, I had helped-"

"Say no more!" The Sunbreaker pressed a button on the side of her helm. "Ouros? It's Lilavati-12. I have a Bane of the Vault with me." A pause. "Yes! She wants to be a Sunbreaker!" She gestured to Cass, and Cass nodded. "Alright, Commander! We're coming in!" The Exo rearranged a few of the Conflux's threads, and the Gate opened up. Both Titans passed through and arrived at The Burning Shrine on Mercury.

The Burning Shrine consisted of a beach in the front, a couple of forge controls in the back, and a large hallway parallel to both in the middle, all of which are connected by 3 smaller hallways on the left, right, and middle. In between the hallways, there were two semi-bridges on the left and right sides. In front of the beach, there was a circular platform outstretched from the middle, and this platform is The Forge, the source of the Sunbreakers' power. To ignite it was one thing, but to harness it was another. The Forge stood as a symbol of bravery for recruits, and a beacon of hope for others.

When the two Titans arrived, Ouros greeted them over the loudspeaker, her voice was wise and melodious. "Greetings, Cassandra Razar, Bane of the Vault, Avenger of Kabr, and Protector of the Universe. You stand here because of your skill as a sword and shield for the City, and your willingness to become a Sunbreaker, a flame to burn the Darkness. If you are willing to give your life for this cause, then reignite the Forge." Cass ran to the back, flipping switches and pushing buttons that released butane gas and ignited it. "Well done, Cass. Now, approach the Forge, and ask yourself, 'What powers do you seek?'" said the Commander.

Cass ran back to the Forge, thinking about her family. She thought of her parents from Palamon, who were killed by town officials for sport, in front of the whole town. She remembered her sister being enslaved by the mayor for sex appeal. She recalled the same mayor who kept saying 'Make Palamon Great Again', and the time when the walls of Palamon were not keeping the Fallen out, but rather keeping the citizens in. She stepped onto the Forge, and stretched her hand out to an orange orb. "I seek the power of freedom and liberty, for all people: men, women, queer, or agender; gay, straight, both, all, or neither; Human, Awoken, and Exo." The orb grew into a flaming hammer, similar to Thor's, and she raised it, saying, "I will stand for every person that walks in the Light, no matter their race, gender, sexuality, or religion. I shall be their beacon, their pillar, their Titan, their Guardian."

A new voice was heard on the speakers, wretched, mechanical, and terrifying. "Ah, the noble Titan. So brave to stand for her Light, so strong to support the living, so willing to give her life for those she lost. How would you like to see your family again?" Vex Goblins, Hobgoblins, Harpies, and Minotaurs flooded the whole Shrine.

"Xylar!" shouted Ouros, "He found us!"

Cass turned around, covered in flames, wielding her new Hammer of Sol, and charged upon the Goblins. Hobgoblins began to snipe, aiming at the new Sunbreaker. Cass lifted herself into the air, threw the Hammer at the Hobs, and called it back with a flick of her wrist. Harpies began to fly closer to the Sunbreaker, firing their slap rifles. Minotaurs marched in from all sides, Torch Hammers at the ready. Cass charged at the Minotaurs, deflecting each of their bombs away from her and into the Harpies with a swing of her Hammer, and she plowed through the brutes with one swift charge. As each new wave teleported themselves onto the scene, Cass met each of them with unstoppable force. Eventually, The Timeless shouted, "CURSES! WHEN YOU MEET ME AGAIN, SUNBREAKER, YOU WILL CEASE TO EXIST!" The remaining Vex disappeared.

Ouros thanked Cass. "On this day, Vaultsbane, you have proven yourself not only as a Sunbreaker, but also as a pure Titan. Tell everyone about us, make sure that the other Titans can follow us if they choose to."

Cass returned the compliment, saying, "Thank you, Ouros, for this Hammer, this strength to continue my mission, your mission, and the goals of the City." She raised her Hammer to the Sun, "With this, I will fight for those who are too weak to stand, too fearful to fight, and too quiet to speak! With this, everyone will be able to rise!"

* * *

The Aphix Invasive returned to Xylar, weakened and battered by the new Sunbreaker. The Timeless Hydra has had enough. He screamed, "GO TO MARS! REPORT TO THE CONDUCTIVE MIND! RETURN WITH THE ARC IN YOUR GRASP, OR DIE SCREAMING!"


	31. Caller of Destruction

CALLER OF DESTRUCTION

 _What does it mean to be a Warlock? Everything. Only Warlocks can understand where everything stems from. By understanding the knowledge behind the Universe, Warlocks begin to channel its Power. As fulcrums of Reality, as pivots in the Space-Time continuum, Warlocks allow the flow of everything to course and build up within them. Hunters will scout, scavenge, and survive in the wilderness. Titans are soldiers for the City, being the spears and walls for the people. Without us, both classes would never be able to fight back. Voidwalkers and Sunsingers harness_ _transcendent energy and use that to obliterate foes and give life to the team. Stormcallers see a different path, an Earth-bound path to Power. They are conduits of the first power in the Universe: Chaos. But it's how they unleash it that is extremely powerful. They absorb the chaotic storm, and unleash it, guiding and following its path. The Trance is true understanding, and to open oneself for the Storm is pure power, and thus what it means to be a Warlock._ -Ikora Rey, Warlock Vanguard

* * *

I touched down on Mars, within the Buried City of Freehold, facing the Off-World Transit station. "So," I started, "How do I get these powers?"

Ikora answered with, "The Vex are trying to collect storm energy from the tunnels. This may be our only shot at harvesting any form of the Arc, period. Find the Conductive Mind, and steal its lightning."

"So, I get the same powers as Palpatine, or Storm from the X-Men." I ran into the dark tunnels, leading to the waiting room.

"In a way," said the Warlock Vanguard, "But you need to hurry if you want to catch the oncoming storm on Mars."

I ran through the dark waiting room, and arrived in the large station, only to find the Cabal fighting the Vex. _Storms brew from conflict._ Just then, the Taken appeared out of nowhere, tearing up both sides of the battle. I quickly crouched and ran for cover. A Taken Centurion began sniffing the air. "Fressssssh meat!" it hissed. I hoped that it wouldn't see me, that it would return to the battle. None of that happened. It just came closer and closer to me. I reloaded my Praetorian Foil, swapped the Solar core for the Arc one, and waited.

The Centurion readied its mini-grenade launcher, walked behind the barrier that I stood behind, and howled with delight. I charged up my Fusion Rifle, and electrified the Centurion with it. Everyone heard its painful scream, and starred at me. The Cabal growled, the Vex wailed, and the Taken licked their lips. I told myself, _Run!_ and I did.

I ran through the tunnel leading to the train tracks, with the Cabal, Vex, and Taken fighting each other and following me at the same time. I hurled a Nova Bomb at the survivors, disintegrating all of them. Jared, my Ghost, began to sense some electrical energy emanating from the end of the tracks, and I followed his lead. At the end of the tracks was a huge blue Hydra that fired Arc bolts from its Torch Hammers. The Conductive Mind said, "Your purpose is a paradox, murderer!"

I looked at the Hydra and said, "That's typical talk for a stereotypical villain. BORING!"

The Conductive Mind fired its Torch Hammers, lobbing Arc bombs at me in retaliation. I crouched behind a nearby train, reloaded my Mythoclast and Corrective Measure, and began firing at the Axis Mind. Goblins spawned onto the scene, Minotaurs charged toward me, and Hobgoblins began sniping. _How I really want a sniper right now._ I jumped on top of the train and fired my Mythoclast at the Hobs first, then at the horde of Goblins and Minotaurs. When the foot soldiers were gone, I directed my focus to the Conductive Mind using the Machine Gun.

After more Vex appeared on the scene, a bolt of blue lightning tore through the ceiling and electrocuted the all of the Vex, including the Conductive Mind. Where the bolt struck, a figure encased in blue electricity stood. Its voice was holographic, but clear, "Follow me, Max," then it disappeared, leaving a vertical trail through the floors of the building. I climbed through the first ceiling, navigated the rubble of the building to the stairs, and climbed once more, through 40 stories until I finally reached the top of the Blind Watch.

The Blind Watch is divided into two sections, the outside balcony comprised of two layers connected by stairs, and the inside which acted as an air conditioning system for the rest of the building. Outside, there was a huge rotating turbine that vented out all of the smoke in the building, and acted as a large lightning rod.

As the sun faded and the storm rumbled, I climbed up to the Watch, and there stood the blue figure, right in front of me. "Do you know who I am?"

"Mysterious," I said, "and blue."

"You'll find out who I am soon enough. But for right now, I need you to sync up with three separate points around the turbine. Follow," and he disappeared, only to reappear at one of the fuel tanks that was surrounded by lightning. As I approached, the storm grew wilder, and one of the bolts almost electrocuted me. When I made it to the middle of the tank, the figure said, "I was once a Warlock, destined for great things, I even mastered the elements. Heck, I invented them." The storm moved to a different tank, and I followed. "I was banished by the Consensus, largely dominated by Concordat at the time. They pledged themselves to the weapon foundries, rather than the people. In the end, Concordat was brought to justice." The storm moved to the final tank, and I sat in the middle of it. "My proteges were once loyal, the Praxic Warlocks, the Sunbreakers, and the Rogue Hunters all saw me as their voice. One of my apprentices, Toland, wanted to take the Hive's power for himself. He was toxic to everyone that stood in his path." The figure moved to the top of the turbine, while thunder boomed intensely. "Now," said the electric humanoid, "step into the chaos, and you will either rise a Stormcaller, or not at all."

I glided up to the top of the turbine, determined to master the Arc, but one of the bolts came too close, rejecting the offer. Then I remembered what Ikora said, 'Don't act like you want this, rather slip into its trance.' _Slip into its trance._ I closed my eyes, emptied my mind, and slowly walked towards the eye of the storm. Each bolt crashed near my feet, but I paid no attention. Once I stepped into the center, lightning passed through my helmet, and into my mind. I saw images of betrayal, exile, and destruction. Then I saw a man in Warlock robes step closer to the Sun on Mercury and watched as his skin melted into the metallic surface, only for it to quickly evaporate into a gas and to be picked up by a couple of solar flares, the same ones that are bombarding Mars. "Osiris!"

He nodded, "I am he who walks eternally. I have sacrificed myself to allow this, because it is my true purpose, to guide the Elemental on their quest to restore the Light."

As soon as the storm passed, a menacing voice taunted, "The humble Warlocks, always looking for a broken cause."

Osiris turned to meet the Hydra below us. "Xylar! How dare you disturb these ruins, these rituals!"

"Osiris," coaxed the Vex Overlord, "you know as well as I do that even the Warlocks have their limits."

"We shall see." The Wise Warlock turned to me, "If he wants the Arc, then give it to him," then he disappeared.

My arms crackled with electricity, small lightning bolts passing from each and every joint. I glided over the Overlord, cast a bolt into his head, and released every bit of the storm into the massive Hydra. He teleported, and sent forth his minions onto the battlefield. I continued to channel electricity into the robots, sending every one of them screaming off the ledges. Xylar fired his full force from his Torch Hammers, and I unleashed my fury upon him in return. He teleported again, and this time I followed him, frying his weapons and circuitry. He screamed in agony, "WHEN YOU MEET ME AGAIN, YOU WILL CERTAINLY DIE!" and he exploded.

"I don't know," I protested, "I've been known to twist the strings of fate."

Ikora's voice came back, "Congratulations, Max! You have the Arc in your hands, and the Vex have lost key footings in their conquest. Return home, your friends are waiting for you."

* * *

The Dark Lord howled in anger at the Minotaur that bowed before him. "HOW COULD YOU, THE OVERLORD OF THE VEX, THE REAPER OF WORLDS, POSSIBLY LOSE THESE FORGOTTEN POWERS?"

Xylar stuttered, "I d-di-di-didn't, m-ma-ma-master. Th-th-th-the Wa-Wa-Warlock s-s-s-stole-"

"I DON'T CARE! YOU HAD ONE JOB TO DO, AND THAT WAS TO STOP THE GUARDIANS FROM RECEIVING THEIR POWERS! YOUR BUMBLING LAZINESS HAS ALREADY COST ME A BLACK GARDEN AND THE VAULT OF GLASS."

"If we just go with my plan-"

"Then we'd all die," said The Taken King as he approached. "My lord, my Taken are ready, and the Dreadnaught is well-protected."

The Dark Lord then said, "Send them to Earth, spread the infection, and kill those Guardians!"

"Thy will be done."

Xylar squeaked, "And what about me?"

The Dark Lord immediately said, "You are to wait on Mercury for further instructions. If any..."


	32. Spire of Demons

SPIRE OF DEMONS

As soon as we got back to the Tower, Shin, Cass, and I met Cayde-6 in the plaza. "Hey! It's my favorite Guardians." He guided us up to an empty plaza where Lord Saladin watched over his Iron Banner. "Alright, I have something to tell you. The Dreadnaught still has its weapon set to 'shoot on sight,' so what we're gonna need is a stealth drive to bypass it. Lucky for us, I hid one at the top of an old colony ship in the Cosmodrome."

Jared asked, "How do you know it's still there?"

Cayde took in a deep breath, but exhaled it in shame. He quickly readjusted himself before he said, "I don't know, but y'all need to hightail it to the Cosmo, or else we'll lose our chance to kill a King."

Shin lead the three of us to orbit, leaving Cayde in the Tower. She and Cass were in the front seats, chatting and laughing the entire time. I overheard Shin saying, "The Prophecy mentioned, 'One will become the challenge,' and, 'One will master the elements.' What do you think they mean?"

Cass answered, "It means that prophecies are obscure and that they shouldn't be tampered with." Both of them laughed.

I hid my snickering until Shin said, "I know that you can hear us." I stopped, and tried to keep a straight face, only for Shin to say, "It's alright, laughing is what keeps us human." As soon as she said that, we landed near the Devils' Lair, and tried to bypass the Fallen. Suddenly, the Taken appeared. "Uh oh!"

"Let me guess," interrupted Cayde on the comms, "Four arms, wear cloaks, and smell like rotting insects?"

I answered with, "How about 'mostly two arms, cloaked in darkness, and smell like burning flesh?'"

The Hunter Vanguard mumbled, "Typical Warlock, always answering with questions," then straightened his voice, "If the Taken are here, then we don't have a lot of time. Forget about the Taken, get to the colony ship!" We rushed past the battle, through the Lair, and up to a giant vault door. "Alright, there is a sequence to opening that door without-"

I rushed to the door and barely tapped it. The door swung a full 135 degrees and toppled. "-exploding?" Cass finished Cayde's sentence, "The locks are blown apart!"

The Hunter Vanguard thought about his loot, feeling shocked and terrified. He mumbled, "I've got to get out of this Tower."

As soon as I stepped on the metal grate, the supports began to fall apart, the platforms began to buckle, and all three of us ran across the platforms that formed a right angle lining the bottom right corner of a large, vertical, square concrete tube. Shin reached the next door first, I was the second one to get across safely, and Cass almost lost her footing on the last platform, but managed to enter the elevator room just in time. A pack of Taken Thrall spawned, randomly warping sideways and messing up our aim. Out of 20, only 10 came close to us, tearing into our armor. I zapped 3 of them with my Thunderstrike, Shin tossed her Envenomed Smoke Bomb at 4, and Cass cooked the remaining 3 with her Sunstrike. I sniffed the air, and it reeked of over-smoked flesh. All of us gagged, and ran to the elevators. They closed their doors, and lifted us up to the top of the launch spire. When we reached the top, we noticed that the bridge to the colony ship was moved, and the controls have been shredded. "Is this the work of the Fallen?"

"Yep, probably to get away from the Taken." Cayde inhaled and said, "Ya know, for a House of Devils, they sure are afraid of demons." All of us laughed hysterically as we climbed to the very top to reach the backup controls, and activated them with my Ghost. "Hey, the bridge is already moving!" exclaimed the Hunter Vanguard, "Now get to the top of the colony ship where-"

I heard Ikora in the background, "We're still waiting for this plan of yours, Cayde." Silence.

As we crossed the bridge, the middle fell away, almost taking me down, but I jumped just in time to avoid its grasp. I ran into the colony ship, now known as The Devil's Spire, only to meet another pack of Taken teleport themselves in. "Great, more Taken," I said, "Well, only one way to go: up." After a bunch of parkour, crouching, jumping, Taken solders trying to blast us off the Spire, blast us into oblivion, or just blast us in general, we finally reached the top using a Fallen lift, which took us to a large circular room with three large platforms, one opposite to where we landed, and the others were to either side of us.

A voiced echoed in the air, "THY WILL BE DONE! VENGEANCE FOR CROTA!" A jet black silhouette warped violently in front of us. Cass pulled out her Hammer, and began charging on the Echo of Oryx. Taken Psions spawned on the platforms and began dividing at will. I countered them with my Stormtrance, while Shin tethered the Echo with her Shadowshot. The Echo blasted them back with its Void missiles, then turned to me. I met the Echo, directed all of the storm within my body at it, and vaporized it. The Echo screamed, so much that it broke the sound barrier.

Shin remarked, "Well, that thing was more mad than an enraged Dalek."

Cayde was confused. "Shin, have you been watching the Warlock playlists on Netflix?"

She stood with confidence, "Do you have a problem with that?"

Cayde muttered, then changed the subject, "Have you found the stealth drive yet?"

"Cayde," Cass was disgruntled, "This whole place has been looted. I doubt if your stealth drives are even here."

"You doubt me, Titan?" he asked. Cayde then said with confidence, "Try entering frequency 5982 into your Ghost."

When we did so, a Fallen chest disappeared, leaving 15 stealth drives on the floor. "There they are."

"The best hiding places are always in plain sight. Transmit them out of there, and leave the rest of the treasure there for me." After that, there was radio silence.

Once Cass took the drives on her way out, Shin turned to me. "Do you know what the prophecy means, or who it pertains to?"

I was staring off into the distance as I shook my head.

Shin rotated her head once. "Okay, so, why won't you laugh openly?"

I met her eyes, "The Before."

She followed up with, "Max, your war is over. Drumpf has been dead for over 700 years, and humanity is safe from itself."

"But is it safe from omniscience, or an all-seeing eye that threatens to kill all of us with the snap of his fingers? Are we safe, period?" I paused after giving weight to each word. "My war began 700 years ago, and it is the same war that I fight now. I fought monsters with human masks in the Before, I fought their ideologies openly, and I thought I was done fighting religious fascism. But what started with Mussolini and Hitler, and what escalated with Donald Drumpf, has taken omniscience in Oryx." I looked at her. "So long as there is extremism, my battle against it will rage on continuously. That is why I fight, why all of us fight: to make sure that everyone gets the choices and rights that they need, to free humanity from the burden of extremism."

Shin nodded, "Yes, but I still want to hear you laugh. Besides, you have a nice sense of humor."

I sighed with some relief, "Thanks, Shin." We teleported back to the ship and headed home.

* * *

Oryx relaxed his tense muscles. He overlooked the Rings of Saturn from his altar. _The Warlock is rising! I must accelerate my plans!_ He called forth, "ECTHAR!"

The Taken Sword of Oryx approached the Bane of Light. "Yes, my lord?"

"Ready the Life-Curser to shoot any other life-forms on sight."

"Thy will be done, my lord." Ecthar retreated to the inner workings of the Dreadnaught, placing the charges in the necrotic vacuums surrounding the Court of Oryx. The Taken King looked at the Awoken Graveyard. _Come for me, Warrior of Light. I will finish what Crota began._


	33. (In)visible Approach

(IN)VISIBLE APPROACH

Amanda Holliday stood by her workbench, waiting for the last frame to come back with a stealth drive component. When it arrived, she told it, "That's the last one, port-side." The frame nodded, and inserted it into Eris Morn's ship. She turned to an approaching Cayde, who was accompanied by Cass, Shin, and myself. "Cayde," she asked "isn't this Eris's ship?"

"Is it really?" said the Hunter Vanguard in a fake confused tone Ya know, you're an artist with those skills, can't even see the join."

"Flattering, Cayde!" The shipwright sounded amused, "But, Zavala has final sign-off on all launches, and he can't sign until there is a valid reason."

"Star-gazing tour?" flirted Cayde. Amanda gave him a look that said, _Is that all you've got?_

I stepped in, "How about an unsanctioned operation, using experimental stealth drives-"

"Modified!" quipped the Vanguard.

I continued as if no one said anything, "-to infiltrate a Dreadnaught floating within Saturn's rings on a suicidal mission-"

"I didn't it say it was suicidal."

"-to knock out its weapons, create a transmat zone, and send in the calvary."

Cayde fell silent. Shin decided, "Let's go with 'Test flight'."

Amanda nodded, penned the request, and said, "All yours." At that moment, we started the engines, and raced for Saturn.

While we were still in Warp One, Cass sat next to me. "I understand that you fight a philosophical war, as well as a physical one," said the Titan.

"Cass," I turned to her, "you don't need to follow me."

"Yes, I do. You still think that you can fight this alone, that you can single-handedly kill your enemy." She laid a hand on my shoulder, "You can't even see that it is your own selfishness which prevents you from defeating Fascism. You stopped Drumpf in the Before, but now you're a Guardian, and even Warlocks need help from time to time." Her voice held some sympathy alongside analysis.

I nodded, even though I began crying inside, I nodded with a straight face. It wasn't until we reached the Jovians that I started to let it all out.

When Cass managed the pilot seat, Shin noticed me crumpled on the floor of the cargo bay, holding back my tears while crying into a pillow of Hive marrow. "Hey," she whispered, "It's alright." She held me in her arms, upright. "Cass didn't mean to harm you," she coaxed, "She can see anyone's deep, dark secrets. But it doesn't make you a horrible person." My tears kept flowing. "They are just who you are," she continued. I stopped, trying to contain my wailing, but failing part-way. "Let me help you, Max. Let me lift the weight off your shoulders with you."

I sniffled, "But why?"

"You were there to help me recover from my past, you were there to give me a future. Let me return the favor, because no matter what happens, I will always love you." What she said was sudden, it made my heart race 5 laps in anxiety, then it stopped completely when she kissed me. I felt like I was going to faint. My mind was racing with too many questions, all of them surrounding Shin. My limbs went numb.

Cass flew the ship into the Rings of Saturn, and activated the stealth drive. She managed to get within a few thousand miles of the Dreadnaught before I heard her Ghost say, "It's malfunctioning!" A fuse fried itself, and we were visable to the naked eye. "Do you think they can see us?"

* * *

Ecthar approached Oryx at his Altar. "My Lord, there is a ship on the starboard side."

Oryx breathed a sigh of relief, _The Warlock!_ He turned to his lieutenant, "Nuke that ship!"

"But sir, we have other weapons. The Tombships-"

"I SAID NUKE IT!"

* * *

The massive weapon on the side of the Dreadnaught began to charge. "I THINK THEY CAN SEE US!" shouted the Ghost. Cass pushed the lever to 'Maximum Thrust,' and we were flying towards a little platform on the Dreadnaught. The Titan shouted, "It's not going fast enough!" With my senses firing on all cylinders, I grabbed Shin's hand, held onto Cass's shoulder, and focused on the platform. _We must Blink!_ The musky odor of the ship distracted me, breaking my focus, but I imagined the same smell on the Dreadnaught. The weapon fired. Our helmets formed around our heads, and we closed our eyes. The ship broke apart.


	34. Dreadnaught of Fear

DREADNAUGHT OF FEAR

Zavala stood at the Vanguard table, eyeing Cayde suspiciously. "Do you have something to say, Cayde?"

Cayde looked at the Commander, attempting to talk himself out of it. "Nope, Nothin' to say, just viewin' my map."

The Titan Vanguard gave Cayde a long stare that meant business. "Really? Because I know you've hatched something big, and I want to see the damn chicken!"

Ikora snickered, "No chickens here, sir! Every Guardian is brave!"

"Very funny, Ikora. Are you in on this too?"

"No, sir." She desperately tried to keep a straight face.

"Then Cayde," Zavala turned to the Hunter Vanguard, "What on Earth are you planning?" Suddenly, three tiny blips appeared on the holographic Dreadnaught. "What are those blips?"

Cayde broke down, "Umm...false frequencies?"

"I knew it!" Zavala advanced on Cayde. "You sent THREE Guardians on a suicide mission to the Dreadnaught, without authorization!"

"Oh, right. Can I have authorization? Because it's not a suicide-"

Zavala stormed, "Pray that your chosen few can succeed! Or else you are stripped of your Vanguard Honor!"

* * *

On the Dreadnaught, we woke up on one of the platforms that hung over the edge. The giant ship as a whole was well-constructed, for Hive architecture. It was made out of Marrowed Hadium, a mixture of bone marrow and Hadium which held dark brown hues and had angled walls, doors, pillars, invisible bridges, etc. The floors, on the other hand, were generally flat, with the exceptions of the ramps in a few places. There were a few pits that fell for miles that could only be crossed by invisible bridges, others couldn't be crossed at all. The smell was just as musky as Eris's Ship and the Hellmouth, if not more so. The place in its entirety was threatening in its own way, and we were determined to knock that threat down a couple of pegs.

When I woke, Shin and Cass were already awake. Shin was busy juggling her knife and smoke bomb, waiting for the Titan and me to wake up. "Rise and shine, Max!" she said.

"What happened?" I asked, looking shocked, then frightened, "OUR SHIP!" I turned to face the Awoken Graveyard opposite the Dreadnaught and found the remains of Eris's ship. "No," then I tested the comms but heard only static. "No!" I began throwing a tantrum, "No! No! NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" I knelt down, crying, "WHY, CRUEL WORLD? WHYYYYYYYYYYY!?"

Shin and Cass ran over to comfort me, kneeling by my side. The Hunter patted my back reassuringly, "It's alright, Max."

I lashed out, "ALRIGHT!? WE'RE STRANDED ON THIS HELLHOLE WITHOUT AN ESCAPE ROUTE! HOW IS EVERYTHING GOING TO BE ALRIGHT!?"

"Hey," Cass whispered, "We'll make it through this, we always have. Shin has a bow and I have a hammer, but you can call a storm!" She offered to lift me up, "We're Guardians, remember? We stand for the Light, where others have fallen. We stand for the people of the City and their diversity. We stand to send the Darkness back into the void from whence it came. We stand to make a difference in this world."

"Now we have a chance to prove ourselves!" said Shin, "What's a better place to strike back than inside the belly of the beast?"

I sniffled, "Maybe you're right," I took Cass's hand, and she pulled me up. I tried to straighten my voice, but a bit of sorrow was visible. "But to leave this place, we need to disable that weapon and deploy the beacon."

"Alright then!" shouted an enthusiastic Shin, "Let's move out!" As she left, I found a couple of black and glowing blue icosahedrons with spikes hidden in a few alcoves and secret rooms and picked them up. They started whispering in an ancient language, one that wasn't known to even the Cryptarchs (I know because I asked them.) She shouted, "Come on!"

I ran to catch up, only to find them on the other side of a huge chasm. "How did you get over there?" I shouted.

Jared scanned the area. "Invisible bridges. I'll lead the way." Sure enough, I followed him across, though I don't know why I kept zig-zagging between bridges. Nevertheless, I made it. After following the whispers of 3 more icosahedrons and collecting them, I followed Shin and Cass to the Hall of Souls.

The Hall of Souls acted like a huge ring surrounding the Court of Oryx, which was a pair of poisonous circular platforms, one of which had two huge diagonal beams that shoot towards the sky, but ended before they could touch each other. Those beams were placed on a smaller platform that was at least 2 meters away from the center of the main platform of the Court in terms of the width and height, in other words: the portal was further from the six statues of Thrall. Attached to the hallway with the six statues is a larger room, with symmetry on two axises: A bridge running from the hallway to the opposite end, which contained a giant battery for the Life-Curser outside. This room had two other hallways that were symmetrical in position but not in size or structure. These hallways led to the Hall of Souls, which led to two other rooms with a giant battery in each of them. Opposite to the Court were the exits to the Hull Breach and Mausoleum.

When we arrived via a different entrance, our Ghosts had to scan for invisible platforms to cross the chasm and get to the visible ones. Cass went to the right side, Shin and I went to the left. Shin stopped at the first battery, which was an orb suspended between two poles, and I continued to the second. Our Ghosts examined them and took down their force fields. Cass destroyed hers first, which summoned Taken near Cass and me. She rushed to The Hunter's position, killing the Acolytes and Psions while Shin destroyed the battery. I was having trouble multitasking, but with their help, I killed off the Taken and we destroyed the last battery. We heard a decrescendo throughout the Dreadnaught, and we knew that the weapon was stiff and bereft of life. In other words, we rushed to the Hull Breach.

The first thing that we noticed was the giant Cabal ship that was lodged all the way into the right side of the breach. Second, there was a giant hole on the left side, and the whole Hull Breach was cleaner than the other giant rooms on the Dreadnaught. Third, there were various levels in this breach, none of which held any sort of pattern. Surprisingly, we weren't sucked out into space! Alex floated out of Shin's backpack and flew towards a random point in the Hull Breach. Shin ran to her Ghost and began setting up the spawn zone. As soon as our radios began to work, the alarms from the Cabal ship blared, and a Goliath Tank emerged from it. "Uh oh," said Alex.

"A tank!? Why would you bring a tank to space!?" shouted Jared.

"Because the Cabal are crazy, over-militarized nuts!" I answered.

"I bring some ammo crates from the ship! You'll need them!"

Cass ran to the tank without blinking, Shin ran after her with her bow at the ready, and I glided over the battle, Mythoclast in hand. The Tank fired its missile towards us, but we scattered just in time. Shin fired her Void Arrow at the Tank, tethering it to the ground. The Tank fired its grenades in retaliation. Cass pulls out her hammer and attacks the Goliath with all of her might. The Tank launches her back, and she throws her hammer into the missile launcher, cracking it. I finish off the Tank with my Stormtrance, frying its circuitry, and closing off its weapon ports. Its next attack caused the entire tank to explode, sending shrapnel in random directions. "Incoming call from the Tower," said Jared.

"Alright, Cayde!" shouted Shin, "The Dreadnaught's weapon is dead, and there is a patrol beacon in the Hull Breach!"

"Then I suppose I should congratulate you," responded Zavala. The three of us stared at each other in shock as he continued, "But we aren't done yet! I need you to storm that ship and search for anything that they have on Oryx."

"Roger," I said. I looked at Shin and asked, "When will we ever be done?" She shrugged, then Cass led us into the Cabal ship. She cleared a path for us through the Legionaries and Taken, while Shin and I weaved around walls and blast shields. When we caught up to Cass, the battle room was quiet except for the engines and full of dead bodies and black goo. Cass pulled out her Ghost to scan the battle plans. "Looks like the Cabal intentionally crashed their ship into the Dreadnaught to challenge Oryx," said the Ghost, "and he can only be reached through a 'Rupture'."

"Must be a portal!" I exclaimed, "Have they found one?"

"They have a team heading for it right now."

"Then I suggest you get there first," said Zavala. We left for the Mausoleum, which was longer than the other rooms, had a giant ramp leading to the Cabal ship, and on the opposite end was a bottomless pit. We descended down the ramp to find a giant Colossus leading the Cabal from the sidelines, Taken and Hive were drawing them away from the rupture, and we were given the order to kill every last one of them. The Colossus began moving toward a Thrall statue, his Cabal were slaughtered left and right, as were the Taken and Hive. Suddenly, three Taken Wizards appeared near the Colossus, cornering him into the statue. The Colossus fought back with all of his might, but jet black ropes began to strangle him, and he disappeared with the Wizards.

We left for the Mausoleum, which was longer than the other rooms, had a giant ramp leading to the Cabal ship, and on the opposite end was a bottomless pit. We descended down the ramp to find a giant Colossus leading the Cabal from the sidelines, Taken and Hive were drawing them away from the rupture, and we were given the order to kill every last one of them. The Colossus began moving toward a Thrall statue, his Cabal were slaughtered left and right, as were the Taken and Hive. Suddenly, three Taken Wizards appeared near the Colossus, cornering him into the statue. The Colossus fought back with all of his might, but jet black ropes began to strangle him, and he disappeared with the Wizards. Cass was shocked, "Oryx just recruited a Colossus!"

The Commander's voice was firm, "Let him take all he wants! He won't alive long enough for it to matter."

"Find the statues!" interrupted Eris, "Toland said that they are keys to the Ascendant Realm!"

Cass ran to the first statue, examining it with her Ghost. "It's linked to the Rupture, but we need more data to understand the connection." Shin found a skewed statue similar to the first and examined it. I checked up on a crumbling statue, "Dead. Eris is right, but I think we might have bad luck here."

That's when we heard a loud POOM coming from two archways, similar to the ones we found in the Court of Oryx. Cass shouted, "The Rupture's opening!" Thrall began spilling out of the portal. Eris exclaimed in fear, "The Thrall will smother your Light! Do not suffer from Vell Tarlowe's fate!"

"Not going to happen!" shouted Shin. Together we ran for the Rupture, but upon touching it, we were launched into a wall. "Wha-? But how?"

"Then it is true, only the Ascendant can will a Rupture to open," said Eris. That's when we saw another Echo emerge from the portal. It started firing bolts of darkness at us, scattering us in every single direction. Shin retaliated with another arrow, aimed at the Echo's heart. Taken poured out of the portal Cass charged at the Echo with her Hammer, and I fell into Stormtrance again, cleaning up the other enemies before directing my focus to the Echo. It lashed out in anger, then Shin fired two more arrows into the Echo, killing it. The screams were louder than the first Echo. The Rupture closed when the Echo died. I asked, "Alright Eris, how do we get past this Rupture?"

"You must become Ascendant, there is no other way."

* * *

"THE WARLOCK," began the Dark Lord, "LANDED ON YOUR DREADNAUGHT!?"

"I don't know how! I destroyed his ship before he could land!"

"DID IT EVER OCCUR TO YOU THAT WARLOCKS BLINK!?"

"No," Xylar appeared before the Dark Throne, "Oryx was too busy on multiplying his Taken that he forgot about the Guardians and their powers."

"But unlike Xylar-"

"Oh, stop it Oryx! That Warlock disabled your only weapon on the Dreadnaught. He hasn't approached Mercury yet!"

"Right, like your doomsday weapon can recharge instantly. It takes 3 whole years to recharge!"

"BOYS!" shouted the Dark Lord, "We have a simple solution to our problem: Baxx." Oryx knew what this meant, and he was eager to try it. As soon as he disappeared, the Dark Lord turned to Xylar, "Is Mercury charging?"

"It is, Master."

"Good, then send Theosyion to speed up the process."

"It shall be done," and Xylar disappeared as well.


	35. Descend for Ascension

DESCEND FOR ASCENSION

Skolas looked around in his cell. He wondered if he was ever going to make it out alive before a Guardian decided that he should die. Just as his anxiety settled in, he felt something pull him into a dark nether, one that tried to lull him to sleep and away from reality. "You are Skolas," the calm voice began, "Once a Dreg, then a Baron, and now Kell of Kells. You have been Taken."

Skolas fought against the lulling urge. "WHO ARE YOU!?" he barked.

"Rest now, Skolas," continued the voice, "your fight is over. Yet because your arms were cut off and your Ether Mask is wrecked, you feel as if there is still a war. You thought that you could fight against the Guardians. But you have been usurped, and your Wolves have been scattered as a result, fleeing to Mars with their Prime Servator to regain their glory. In their eyes, you hold no power. In everyone's eyes, you are just another Dreg." Skolas then began to weep. The voice carried on, "What you need is power, a special power that cannot be usurped easily. I have made a special blade for you. It is called [powerful dictator]. Take it in hand and claim every house, every banner, and every planet. Let no one stand in your way!"

Skolas felt a knife cutting through his veins, opening his arteries, and dissecting his brain. He screamed as Darkness began to flow into every opening, transforming him into a Taken Warbeast. He felt a sense of awakening as his arms grew back and his face was repaired. Once his transformation is complete, he took his Scorch Cannon and shouldered it. The Kell of Kells was ready to kill again!

* * *

We returned to the Tower and approached Eris Morn. "Eris, how do we become an Ascendant Hive?" asked Shin.

Eris answered with, "Toland spoke of the tithing system: Thrall and Ogres to Acolytes, Acolytes to Knights and Wizards, Knights and Wizards to Ascendants, and Ascendants to the Hive Gods."

"Is there a shorter way?"

"No."

"But we aren't Hive!"

"Doesn't matter!" quipped Eris, "You would need the essence of lesser Hive on top of an Ascendant Soul!"

"And what about Crota?"

Eris hissed to herself, "It can be done!" She turned to us, "Take Toland's journal with you. Grab as much Hive marrow as you can. Once you enter the Chamber of Night, steal Crota's soulstone."

"Sounds good," I said, "One last thing," I pulled out 15 glowing icosahedrons and handed them to Eris, "What are these things, and can you translate their whispers?"

Eris took the icosahedrons and began listening. "I can't. These 'Calcified Fragments' are speaking a language that even I can't understand."

"But if you wanted to translate them?"

"Then I will need a point of reference."

"A new Rosetta Stone! We'll find it, Eris." We left the Tower for our ship and left for the Moon.

* * *

 _It began with Crota, but he was only a servant of his Father's will. His crusade against the Light ended with his death, which I thank you for. But in doing so, Oryx has pledged his revenge against us, ensuring that we are being torn apart bit by bit, and restitched in his image: The Taken. Even now, his Daughters are twisting our fate, bleeding the Darkness into the Light, slowly corrupting our will. To reach him, you need to walk in the dying footsteps of his son, tithing lesser Hive to your power. You must become Ascendant._ -Eris Morn

* * *

Once we landed in the Circle of Bones, Shin, Cass, and I began killing Hive Acolytes and taking their marrow. Eris said, "Hold fast to Toland's Journal, it saw my time in the Dark." With that, we entered the World's Grave and ran into the Chamber of Night, collecting fresh Hive Marrow wherever we went. As soon as we entered, we began listening to Toland's scratchy voice, "The Throne Worlds, and whatever they can bleed through, shield the Hive from the Traveler's Light. If we were to pass through its deepest layers, then our Light would collapse like a dying star."

"I bet that Toland was banned from parties," said Shin.

Along the way, we found a few Thrall scattered among the hallway and feeding on old marrow. After stealing their essences, we arrived in the Chamber where Crota's soul was once held. "Alright!" I said, "Let's get the soulstone, tithe the marrow, and-" RAURGH! We heard the Orge as it came out of hiding. We scattered when it fired its eye beams, and then the ads started crawling out of the water. Shin threw her smoke and Voidwall grenade at the Thrall then fired her Thorn and Hawkmoon at the Ogre. Cass fired a rocket from her Gjallarhorn at the beast, and it retaliates with its eye beam. I fire my Mythoclast into its back, burning a few holes and enraging the beast. It charged towards me and slammed its fists down. I barreled out of the way, Shin fires her arrow into the Ogre's back, and Cass fired another rocket. At that moment, the same jet black robes which took the Colossus appeared and snatched the Ogre, pulling it into a nether. "It's gone!" remarked Jared, "Oryx just took an Ogre!"

"Not even Oryx can control an Ogre," then Eris realized, "unless it's Taken!"

"Noted," said my Ghost.

"Alright, alright. Enough of the discussions!" shouted an annoyed Cass, and she cut off a piece of the stone using her Ghost.

Shin took it and said, "Alright, Eris. What now?" There was a deafening silence on the comms. "Eris!?" All of us changed radio channels and we still couldn't get a signal, not even a cheesy song. "Our comms are broken..."

"...And so is the ship link!" shouted Cass

A deafening screech! We fell down as the Image of Oryx said, "YOU AGAIN!? KILLING MY ECHOES IS ONE THING, BUT VANDALISING MY SON'S SOULSTONE!?"

I begged, "Well, we were just...respecting our enemies. I-I-I mean everyone has to, right? Just because we didn't agree with Crota doesn't mean that we can't show a little dignity, right?"

"ENOUGH! YOUR LIGHT IS AN INFECTION, AND I WILL CURE IT **HERE!** " Taken spawned on the stone's remains, with the Ogre and the Colossus.

"RUN!" I shouted, and we did. We ran past the Taken Wizards, Knights, Acolyte, Captains, Vandals, Psions, and Phalanxes in the halls. We ran all the way to the entrance to the Chamber of Night and tested our comms again. Surprise, surprise, nothing happened. "Great," I said, "our ship link is still blocked, and the doors are locked! We're trapped!"

"If we don't find a Tomb Husk," said Jared.

"What?"

He played a recording from Toland's journal, "The bindings that the Hive create can be splintered by releasing the energy within a Tomb Husk. Not even the strongest locks can withstand that. But first, you need to find a Tomb Husk." Jared paused the audiobook and Shin began searching for a Husk. "Found one!" she shouted. The recording continued with, "Next, you need to glue it to the lock. Anything from Elmer's to Gorilla Glue helps! It's amazing how antiques from The Before can help out the Guardians of today!"

"And we don't we any glue!" shouted Cass. We heard a low growl from the hallways behind us. Shin jumped up to the lock, held the Husk in one hand, charged her Arc Blade in the other, stabbed the Husk into the lock, and blasted it with her Golden Gun, all in midair.

We heard a low growl from the hallways behind us. Shin jumped up to the lock, held the Husk in one hand, charged her Arc Blade in the other, stabbed the Husk into the lock, and blasted it with her Golden Gun, all in midair. Jared said, "Remind me to make copies of this journal!" The door opened, and Shin used her last two Golden bullets to melt the two Taken Knights waiting on the other side. We rushed in a U-turn to the Temple of Crota, until we were blocked by another door just before the hallway. This time, there were two locks that were guarded by two Taken Wizards. Cass ran toward the door, clearing it of enemies, while Shin handled the Husk on the top of a platform, and I grabbed the Husk from a mini cellar. The Taken Ogre and Centurion were getting closer to us, and we repeated the same process again on the two locks. They were just mere decimeters away from us. I shouted, "RUN, GUYS! RUN!"

We ran through the Temple of Crota, passing the Taken Vandals and Captains to the other side of the room, Ogre and Centurion still in pursuit. At that moment we heard a different voice, "Guardian," said Variks through the white noise, "Ketch out of Fallen hands, watch your back!"

"What Ketch?" I asked.

"The Traitor's Ketch. Follow me!" answered Shin. We arrived at a leveled crater floor with a teleportation lift to the Traitor's Ketch. After taking the lift up to the engine room, Shin stopped and said, "This is where we killed Taniks." We climbed an angled flight of stairs to a hallway, which led us to the first large room. "This room was a cakewalk!" Instantly, Taken began to spawn everywhere, exuding their Blight throughout the room. I melted a Blight with my Mythoclast and cleared the left side with a Storm Grenade. Shin threw a Vortex Grenade at the Blight on the right side and choked the Taken with her Smoke. She remarked, "And it still is!" We moved to the next room, which held the ruined remains of a Fallen Walker towards the door to the bridge and a tunnel to either side of the huge room. "That walker was devastating, it almost took two hours to kill it!" The room began to fill with Blight. "Taken incoming!" she shouted. We ran all over the room, repeating what we did in the first. The second wave of Blight and Taken covered the room, but Shin cleaned up the room using her Hawkmoon and Thorn. Afterwards, we ran through a winding hall to the final room. All of us froze before the sight of Skolas, the Mouth of Oryx.

He looked like his former glory, except he was consumed by Darkness, devoured by greed, and twisted by Oryx to be his servant. "SHIN MALPHUR!" he bellowed, "I'VE BEEN WAITING A LONG TIME FOR THIS!" He fired his Shadow Cannon at us, right around the time when Taken began to spawn.

We ran for cover. "Alright," said Shin, "We need a plan to kill this guy once and for all!"

"Agreed!" we said. Another cannon shot fired into our barrier. I said, "Shin, focus everything you have on Skolas, I will take care of the ads, and Cass, the Blights." Both of them nodded, and all of us went to our jobs. Shin fired an arrow at Skolas, tethering him to the ground, and proceeded to snipe his head. Cass threw her Hammer at the Blights, then tackled Skolas, crushing his rib cage. I fell into my Stormtrance, killed the ads, then directed everything I had at the Taken Kell.

He launched us back. "RISE, TAKEN! PREPARE THESE GUARDIANS FOR THEIR NEW MASTER!"

We ran back to cover, reloaded our weapons, and swapped tasks. Cass took care of the minions, Shin focused on the Blights, and I handled Skolas. Every shot that was fired from his Shadow Cannon was a close call. Once again, we focused on the boss once everything else was cleared out. I melted one of his arms and part of his face with the Mythoclast, and he retaliated with a blinding shot. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU! WOLVES! KILL THEM ALL!" The final round of Taken was full of Vandals and Captains, all of whom were ripped out of the Prison of Elders.

As I went to clean the Blights, a Captain threw a blinder at me, and I ducked back to cover. Shin shouted, "How are we going to get past this, Max?"

"I have no idea, Shin!" I shouted back.

"Well, we need a plan!" shouted Cass. We looked around, then we noticed how our cover had two notches. "I've got it!" she said, "Shin, sit here and snipe Skolas. Max, watch her back. I'll take care of the Blights and ads." She ran around, Atheon's Epilogue and Found Verdict in hand, saving her Gjallarhorn for last. Shin fired at Skolas's head using her Praedyth's Revenge, not paying attention to anything else. As I watched her back, I was also cleaning up the ads. In the process, I was blinded 4 times and had to deal with the Vandals that kept shielding themselves, but thankfully, Cass was there to help.

Skolas became irritated. He jumped in front of Cass. She lifted herself backwards and fired her Gjallarhorn rockets at the war beast. He fired from his cannon and sent Cass sprawling backward. "CASS!" we shouted in shock. She groaned. I lashed out against the 'Kell of Kells'. Shin did the same. She unleashed her full fury on Skolas, raising her Golden Gun and charging her Arc Blade. Using my Mythoclast, I melted his Shadow Cannon and 2 of his other arms, and Shin sliced and diced into his armor and face, cutting off his last arm and both of his legs. As his body began to fall, Shin fired another arrow at the limb-less Skolas and threw her Blade into the Kell.

He spat, "YOU'LL NEVER AVOID HIM! HE HAS HIS EYE FIXED ON YOU! YOU WILL KNEEL BEFORE-"

VOOM! Shin fired her last shot at the Kell's head, disintegrating Skolas for good. His ashes immediately floated to Shin's sniper, covering it in Taken residue. She dropped it immediately. "Alex?" she asked.

"Yes, Shin?"

"Keep this weapon under lock and key."

"Huh?"

"Just keep it safe. We need to know more about it."

The Traitor's Ketch began to explode around us. I looked around for an escape route, and my Ghost still couldn't find our ship. As soon as the floor was skewed, Shin found a stolen jumpship and said, "OVER HERE, MAX!" I ran back to pick up Cass, only to learn that Titans are too heavy to carry. "LEAVE HER!"

Cass whispered, "Go," *cough* "be strong," *wheeze* "and remember," *cough cough* "just ask Shin for help," *huff wheeze* she would ask you to do the sa-" and she passed out. I placed her Gjallarhorn on her chest, folded her hands over the weapon, and closed her eyes. I ran back to the ship and we took off as soon as there was an opening.


	36. Honor for a Friend

"HONOR" FOR A FRIEND

As soon as Shin and I got back to the Tower, we slowly walked to Eris. Cass's death left a distinct image in our minds. "Do you have Crota's soul?" asked Crota's Bane.

"We have his crystal, but it's empty," I said heavily.

"But you may have a chance to restore it! His Death Ceremony is in his Throne World! If you can sneak by-"

"How!?" I shouted, "The Taken killed Cass, and now they have our scent!"

"But we must kill Oryx!"

"A Titan's life was taken away from us, Eris!" Zavala marched into the room, "We need more walls to prevent this from happening again."

"We can when Oryx is dead!" she quipped.

Cayde stepped in, "If you have any idea to protect the Guardians from Oryx's gaze..."

"There is no other way."

"If they had the City to back them up...," suggested Ikora.

"You are delaying the inevitable!"

"By saving them?" argued the Vanguard.

The whole room erupted into chaos. I said to them, "Guys!" Nothing changed. I shouted, "Shut up!" They argued over my voice. "OI! SHUT UP!"

All of them said, "YOU FIRST!"

Angrily, I ran away from the stairs and towards Tower North, with Shin following me. There, we ran into Ras and Jess on our way out of the Tower North. He asked, "Where are you guys going?"

I said, "Away."

"Where to?" inquired Jess.

"My bedroom."

"Why?"

"Cass."

Jess looked at her sister. "Why did you kill her?"

Shin said, "I didn't!"

"That's a lie," Jess creepily inched toward the Hunter, "Because I heard what happened through the comms. I've read your mind, sis. You killed her!"

Shin said again, "I didn't kill her!"

"Then why did I hear, 'Leave her, Max!'? Because I know that was your voice!"

Shin tightened her grip and stood her ground. "Cass was dying from a Darkness blast, fired from Skolas's new Shadow Cannon! I didn't want to risk-"

Jess turned to me, "You should've brought her to your ship!"

I began to cry, "She died in my arms."

"Oh yeah? Is that a lie that she told you?"

"No, it's the truth!"

"Sure, but in the end, you cannot bury the fact that you killed the only Guardian worth her salt, and the love of my life!"

I screamed, "STOP!"

Jess grabbed my neck and pinned me to the wall. "LISTEN TO ME! BECAUSE I CAN MAKE YOUR LIFE A LIVING HELL!" I tried gasping for breath, but she tightened her grip. "YOU WILL HAVE TO LIVE WITH THIS PAIN FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE! YOU CAN'T LAUGH, SMILE, OR EVEN WINK! YOU WILL GO BACK TO YOUR ROOM, AND YOU WILL STAY THERE FOREVER!"

Rasputin pushed Jess away from me. I ran past the Tower North and all the way up to my room, where I shut the door behind me and cried. I wept for Cass, and the fact I let her die. I cried because I knew that there was nothing that anyone would do in her honor. I felt miserable because there was some truth to Jess's words. I asked myself, _Why did I come back to the same world as the Before?_

Then I heard a knock at the door. "Max?"

I opened the door. "Shin?" She wrapped her arms around me, hugging me tightly. I cried into her shoulder. "I'm sorry that I-"

"You have nothing to apologize about," she cried, "I'm sorry that I told you to do that."

"It's fine," I sobbed, "But I was the one who let her die!"

"Shh, it's not your fault," she whispered. Her words were cool and relaxing against Jess's scorching 'reality'.

I felt her holding my head in her hands. I felt sorry that she had to bring me back to sanity, that she had to restore me, that she had so much weight on her back because of me. I didn't want to burden her. Yet she had the strength that I never had, she could fight an entire battalion of Cabal without breaking a sweat, she could destroy the mightiest of deities, she can hold her ground and then some during the Apocalypse with only her Hawkmoon, and she is the one who has guided me for three months. I sobbed, "Shin?"

She whispered, "Yes, Max?"

I felt like the rest of the world was slowing down to a crawl. I began to sweat, my heart was racing, my mind went reeling, my legs went numb, my whole body told me to hold my tongue. But I couldn't. As much as I wanted to remain silent, I couldn't. My attempts at holding back my instincts failed. I whimpered, "I love you."

She grinned and whispered, "I love you, too." We stood in the doorway for a while, not paying attention to the outside world as we were in each other's arms. (Sorry romantics, we didn't kiss.)

Rasputin ran up to us and said, "So, what did you have in mind?"

Still hugging her, I said, "Do you have some stealth codes in your bunker?"

"Yeah?"

"If we can grab those, then maybe we'll have a chance to be in and out of Crota's Throne World..."

"...with his soul in tow!" finished the Hunter excitedly, "Let's go!"

* * *

Jess Malphur wandered the Cosmodrome alone. _So the Vanguard kicked me out for teaching a lesson to some weakling?_ She walked slowly, with her Fatebringer in hand. She kept planning on her next move, her next attack. Then out of nowhere, she was taken away from this dimension. She struggled against the strain of Darkness, even after it pulled her in.

A voice began to say, "You are Jess Malphur, older sister to Shin, champion of the Light. You have been Taken"

She gasped, "So you ARE real!"

"Yes, I am. Now answer me, do you seek the knowledge of power, or the power of knowledge?"

"Both," she struggled.

"Are you exiled from the Tower because of your actions?"

"Yes." Jess stopped resisting.

"Then rest easily," said the voice, "You have no sister to go back to, no team to rely on, and no girlfriend to weigh you down. You are completely free. And yet," it paused, "you hunger for revenge. Do you know why? You are the offspring of Toland! No wonder your mother never mentioned his name, he was always trying to raise you as his pupil. I have a blade made just for you, Jess Malphur. It shall be called [endless dispair]."

A blade appeared out of nowhere and began to carve itself into her skin. She moaned and wailed, "STOP! PLEASE!" But it wouldn't. Instead, Darkness began to seep into her openings until she felt only anger, only hatred, only Sorrow.


	37. Hunkered in a Bunker

HUNKERED IN A BUNKER

We touched down in the Forgotten Shore, on the cliff that overlooked the rusted ships. "Something doesn't feel right," I said.

"Like what?" asked my teammates.

"Taken!" I said with shock, "We might be too late!" We ran past the ships to the bunker entrance. When we approached the door that was opened wide, I remarked, "That's not good!"

Rasputin muttered, "Malahayahti!" He ran through the doorway, down the steps, to the wrecked Seraphim Vault, and we followed. This place was blown apart, torn by the explosion. Chunks of metal were buried in the rubble, giving us a path, albeit rough and rocky, to the other door, leading to the rest of the Bunker. Beyond the Seraphim Vault, everything was intact. Inside a large room known as Bunker War-4, which was a big room that held a few wires and monitors, and overlooked a giant cubical room that was at least 1000 cubic meters, Rasputin checked one of the consoles and began typing.

 **[CON4]: C:\ SEARCH: MALAHAYAHTI.**

 **RESULT: 2642 RECORDS, 1274 EXECUTIONS, 456 CHAT ROOMS, 1 ENTITY.**

Ras was relieved. "He might still be alive!" Anxiously, he typed:

 **[CON4]: C:\ ENTITY LOCATION?**

 **RESULT: UNKNOWN**

Stress covered his Exo body. "Where is he?" Taken Centurions spawned into the room, and we ran into another hallway leading to a room with a central ramp, a platform to either side and two pillars that stabbed themselves into the platforms. This room also had a few monitors.

Two Taken Centurions spawned with Four Taken Psions. The Psions began to split and the Centurions fired their axion darts. Shin yelled, "BACK UP!" and we did. Rasputin shot down the darts with his Vision of Confluence. Shin pulled out her new sniper, which condensed its Taken essence into a musky skin, and shot down the Centurions. I handled the Psions, then we moved through a hallway that was divided into parallel lines, and to a bigger room with another central ramp, with a U-shaped platform above it and more pillars. More Taken came, this time with Vandals. Ras focused on the Psions, Shin sniped the Vandals, I killed the Centurions, and we moved on.

As we moved to the final room, I felt a dark presence. "Shin? Ras?" I asked, "Can you feel that?"

Ras said, "The cold air in the Bunker? Yeah. My temperature sensors are-"

"Yes, I know it's cold. But, I can feel something else," I shivered, "Something tainted."

Shin guessed, "Ether?"

I shook my head.

"Marrow? Radiolaria? Space Turtles?"

"No. Tainted Light!" I shouted in horror.

We entered the final room to find a Taken Jess standing on the bridge before us. "MAX PRODIGY!"

Her voice sent shivers down my spine. I said, "Y-y-yes?"

"YOU KILLED CASS!"

"Actually, Skolas-"

"AND I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!"

Taken spawned all over the room. We scrambled to gain a foothold in this battle. Centurions fired their axion darts, and the Psions multiplied tenfold. I summoned my Stormtrance again to deal with the Psions. Jess launched a Shadow Nova Bomb at me, but I blinked out of the way just in time. As I charged toward her, she vanished in a cloud of smoke. She apparated on the left side, just as more Taken began to spawn. They fired at Rasputin, and the Warmind responded with his Vision of Confluence and Found Verdict. He then directed his attention to Jess. She tried to repel him with her grenades and melee, but to no avail. He slammed his Fist of Havoc down on the Taken Warlock, only for her to disappear again, this time appearing on the other side of the room. After I cleaned out another wave of Psions, Shin fired a Void arrow at Jess, tethering her to the ground. Jess pulled out her corrupted Fatebringer and shot at her sister. I responded with my Corrective Measure, firing 100 rounds into Jess. She liquefied again, this time disappearing into the nether.

I began to ask, "How is this possible!?"

Ras answered, "I don't know!"

Shin replied, "Cass's death sent Jess over the edge, so I'm guessing that her Light was either drained as she was Taken, or the Light left her body."

Ras looked at Shin with curiosity, but dismissed it and began typing in the central console.

 **[CON18]: C:\ CREATE CHAT ROOM**

 **RESULT: CHAT ROOM CREATED AS [CR574]. DIRECTING IN 3...2...1...**

 **[CR574;CON18]: Malahayahti, are you here? (10/26/2761 15:45:32)**

 **[CR574;CON19]: Who is this?** **(10/26/2761 15:45:40)**

 **[CR574;CON18]: It's Rasputin. (10/26/2761 15:45:42)**

 **[CR574;CON19]: Welcome home!** **(10/26/2761 15:45:47)**

 **[CR574;CON18]: Where are you? (10/26/2761 15:45:52)**

 **[CR574;CON19]: In the Dvalin Vault.** **(10/26/2761 15:45:58)**

 **[CR574;CON18]: Can you please come up here? (10/26/2761 15:46:05)**

 **[CR574;CON19]: Sure, just give me a second.** **(10/26/2761 15:46:10)**

The floor in the far corner of the room sunk down to the deepest reaches of the vault. We waited for about a minute until the elevator started to rise again, this time with an Exo Hunter carrying a Curious Transceiver in her hands. Ras spread his arms out to the new Hunter. "Malahayahti!" They embraced. "Good to see you again!"

Mala replied, "Same here, dad!"

Shin and looked them. "DAD!?"


	38. Soul Searching

SOUL SEARCHING

Shin and I stared at Ras and Mala. The Hunter asked, "How?"

"Well," began the Warmind, "I created an A.I. to watch over my bunker 200 years ago, should I ever want or need to move."

"Ok, so what about that device in her hands?"

Mala approached us. "This is a Transceiver," she handed it to Shin, "I developed it in the hopes of finding a lost fusion core, but it's incomplete."

Shin held the transceiver and turned to me. "Can it be fixed?"

"Maybe," I answered, "but it needs a few more resistors and capacitors."

Shin added, "And an operational amplifier, all of which can be found in the City." She handed it back to Mala. "Thank you, Malahayahti."

"Please, call me Mala. And there's one thing that both of you didn't mention."

"What's that?"

"A Voltage source." Mala pulled out a Supercapacitor and the remaining parts of the Transceiver, assembled it together, and said, "Now, I just need to get out into the open." She ran through the rooms and hallways, back to the entrance, and up another flight of stairs to reach the Forgotten Shore. We followed her as best as we could. Once we caught up to her, Malahayahti turned on the transceiver and it received a signal. "The signal is originating from that direction," she said as she pointed to the colony ship known as the Devil's Spire. "I'll go and reclaim the core; you three will need the cloaking codes." We pulled out our Ghosts, and Malahayahti tinkered with their codes, inputting the stealth codes. Once she was done, she said, "Ok, that should do it. Try it out!" Shin's worked perfectly and so did Rasputin's. Mine, not so much. "Hold on," said Mala as she circled round me and started fiddling with my Ghost. "Aha! There's the problem! Your Ghost is a Synthetic!"

"A what?" asked Rasputin, then he turned to me saying, "So you DID kill Rusty in the Black Garden!"

I defended myself, "He killed you first!"

"IT DOESN'T MATTER!"

"YES! IT! DOES!" I shouted in his face. As soon as I calmed down, I said, "I didn't want to lose another friend, and I still don't."

Rasputin huffed, "So you think that you can decide who lives and who dies?"

"If I did, then Cass would still be here."

The Warmind sighed, "Do you really think that I am convinced?"

"Charlemagne would be alive, too."

Ras remembered his crush, then said, "Yeah, that's true."

Mala finished tinkering with Jared and said, "Alright, give it a spin!"

I cloaked seamlessly into the landscape with my Ghost. "Awesome!" I became visible again and said, "Thank you, Malahayahti!"

"No problem!" She noticed the Bad Juju that was strapped to my back and added, "Can I see that Pulse Rifle?"

"Sure!" I said as I handed it to her.

Mala took the weapon and tested it out. "Does it whisper?"

"Sometimes. Why do you ask?"

"Because I can't hear it."

 _Interesting. Why can't she hear them?_

Mala holstered the Pulse Rifle and said, "I'll take the transceiver and head to the Devil's Spire, and you guys can go steal an ascendant soul." With that, she ran for the Spire and we teleported to our ship and set a course for the Hellmouth.

In the ship, Rasputin took the controls and steered us toward the Moon. Shin sat next to me and asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yeah," I replied.

She began to lace her fingers with mine. "I know you're not."

It took me a while to break down and cry, "I can't lose another friend! We've already lost Cass and Jess, and I don't know if-"

She hugged me tightly and said, "It's going to be fine, no one else will die or be Taken, you have my word."

I fought back the tears, "But what if-"

She kissed me and said, "It's not going to happen."

I froze. I couldn't speak. My mind was completely blank. I didn't know what to do next. I just sat there, in her arms, confused on what to do next. Rasputin's voice was a blur, but I could hear the words, "...landing in the Hellmouth," and snapped back to reality. As soon as we landed in the Abyss, the doorway to Crota's Realm opened. As we crossed the bridge, we could hear Ikora on the intercom, "Alright guys, you know what to do."

I began to say, "Yep, intrude on Crota's funeral-"

"Death Ceremony! They are preparing his essence for the next realm!" interrupted Eris.

"Right," Shin rolled her eyes, "so we sneak into his funeral, find and steal his soul, and run away!"

"Then move quietly and unseen, like death," growled Crota's Bane.

As soon as we entered Crota's Realm, our Ghosts cloaked us, and we began to walk down the first flight of stairs. That's when we caught a glimpse of the Hive Swordbearers and Ogres patrolling this side of the bridge. Carefully, we avoided the guards (because they could still smell us), snatched a tomb husk from one of the sides, and placed it on the plate to create the bridge again. Once we crossed the bridge, we crept past the Ogres, Hive Gatekeepers, and Wizards, to the doors leading to Crota's Throne. We ran through the hallway and dropped down to a pool in the tail room of Crota's Throne.

When we advanced, Eris said, "Find his tomb!"

Ras whispered, "How do we know which one is Crota's?"

"You'll know it when you see it!"

I pointed to a floating tomb on the second floor and opposite to the tail room, "That one." I ran to a central perch, avoiding another Swordbearer, and glided up to the tomb. To its sides floated two Deathsingers with elongated pyramids as heads. As I approached the large stone coffin, I could hear them hoarsely singing, "Most beloved Crota, We thank you for your service to the Sword-Logic and our Father. A giant female Knight stepped out from behind the coffin, and I ducked away from her. All of the Hive in the room turned to face the Knight and began to pray. The Knight was fully clad in the bones of her enemies: her boots came from the talons of the Pratiya-Samutpada, her arms engulfed by the spines of the Ahamkara, her chest plate was made from the ribs of an ancient Eliksni Kell, and her helm looked like a spiked crown of teeth and fangs with a jaw that was lined with her own. She shouted, "HERE, WE HONOR THE DEATH OF OUR SAVIOR, CROTA, AND TASK OURSELVES WITH COMPLETING HIS TASK."

The Hive Congregation responded with, "O Xivu Arath, we offer our lives to the Sword-Logic."

I crept around the Deathsingers, approached the coffin from the back, and tried to steal the essence. However, the crystal in my hands wouldn't drink from Crota's tomb. I whispered to Jared, "Can you scan this?"

"Sure." He floated to the coffin and said, "There's something wrong!" he whispered.

Xivu Arath continued, "WE ARE GATHERED FOR ANOTHER PURPOSE!"

I replied to my Ghost, "What is it?"

"It's...empty!"

Shin, Ras, and I said over the comms simultaneously, "I've got a bad feeling about this!" Our cloaks malfunctioned, and the Congregation turned their attention to Shin and Ras. The Deathsingers began to look at me.

Xivu lifted the giant coffin and shouted, "MAX PRODIGY!" I stared at the Knight and the coffin in her hands, and she slammed it down.


	39. Soul Stealing

SOUL STEALING

The coffin shattered as I dodged it, managing to rip a few holes in my robes. The Taken began to spawn and I ran to meet up with Shin and Ras in the second-floor room. "EMPTY!?" Eris shouted through the intercom, "WHAT DO YOU MEAN-"

"It's a trap, Eris! IT'S! A! TRAP!"

There was a long pause in the comms, and we had to occupy ourselves by killing Taken. Eris finally said, "How are we going to get an Ascendant Soul!?"

I glanced at Xivu Arath, who was walking towards us. Osiris stepped out of nowhere and said, "Her."

"Her?" I asked, "Xivu Arath!?"

"She is one of the three Hive Gods, and a Hive God can be killed..."

"...in an Ascendant Realm!" I finished.

Shin gave me a weird look. "Since when do you talk to the air?"

I looked at Osiris, but he said, "Only you and Xylar can see me." He disappeared as soon as possible, and I said to my friends, "Alright, forget Crota, we have a bigger bargain on our hands." I pointed to Xivu Arath, still walking, but this time at a faster pace.

"You're mad!" shouted the Warmind.

I broke into my best Jack Sparrow voice and said, "Thank goodness that I am! If I wasn't, then this would probably never work!"

Rasputin sighed, "Whatever, we don't have much of a choice."

Shin grinned, "Besides, this will be fun!"

We ran out of the room, weapons blazing against the Hive and Taken, and we lured Xivu Arath downstairs. Xivu drew her sword and charged against us. Eris frantically prepared our escape. Rasputin ran toward a Swordbearer and stole his sword, then came back to Xivu and started slashing at her. She retaliated, but Rasputin maneuvered himself out of the way. More Taken came, and we fell into our basic roles again: I cleaned the ads, Shin focused on Xivu, and Rasputin was our support. Shin fired at arrow at Xivu, tethering her to the bridge, then pulled out her Arc Blade and Golden Gun and dealt out some serious punishment to the Hive God.

More Taken arrived, this time with The Colossus, The Ogre, and Jess in tow. Eris shouted, "GUARDIAN! COME! WITH! ME!" and she began enchanting, first quietly, but progressively increased her volume.

Xivu tried to slam her sword down on the Hunter, but Shin caught it just like Rasputin. Some of the ashes on the ground began to glow, giving Shin unparalleled strength as they attached to her back. She pushed Xivu Arath into a wall, breaking her battle armor. Shin held the giant sword by its handle and charged. Xivu ran towards the Hunter, but she thrust the sword into its master's stomach. "I. Am. STRONGER!" shouted Shin.

Xivu collapsed and spat, "Are those going to be your last words?"

Shin stabbed Xivu in the throat, breaking her vocal chords. "Yours," then decapitating the Hive God, "Not MINE!"

I ran to pick up the severed head, just in time for Eris to send us back to our ship. "Phew! Thank you, Eris!"

"It was one of Toland's tricks. My light may be gone, but I still care about you guys."

All of us said, "Aw, thank you!"

"Ahem, do you have an Ascendant Soul?"

"More than Ascendant!" Shin replied, "We just killed a Hive God!"

"Xivu Arath! You have just dealt a crushing blow to the Hive's Crusades!"

"And now," I said, "We'll kill another!"

* * *

Malahayahti stood before a broken bridge to the Devil's Spire. She crossed only to find Taken spawning. She ran past them, following our path up to the top without firing a single bullet, letting her Transceiver guide her. As soon as she reached the top, she found a couple of Taken Wizards, but she killed them easily. Mala pulled out the Transceiver again and found a Dvalin Fusion Core. _Ok, I need to modify this core before anything else happens._ She raced all over the place, grabbing whatever parts she could find and started tinkering with the Core. _Attach this wire here, a capacitor goes here, replace the focusing generator, AHA! Now I just need to reset this!_ Mala then teleported to our ship.

"Malahayahti! Good to see you again!" said Ras, "Did they hurt you? Are you-"

"I'm fine, dad." She turned around to find Shin and me holding Xivu Arath's head. "You brought a giant head on this ship?"

"It's the head of Xivu Arath," I explained, "A Hive God representing the brute force of the Hive."

"What for?"

"To kill Oryx in the heart of his Dreadnaught!"

"Why?"

"To stop the flow of Darkness!"

Mala was confused, "Why do you go to war? Why do you send yourself to the depths of evil in an attempt to extinguish it?"

I pondered for a moment. Shin then answered, "Max lost a battle a long time ago."

Mala said, "I know, World War 3." Shin whispered into Mala's ear, to which the Sub-mind replied, "Atonement? He's doing this to pay off a debt to himself?"

Shin nodded, "He dedicates himself to the eradication of extremism, and I'm afraid that he'll become lost one day."

I crept away and began to cry in a corner. _Am I lost? Will I ever see the light of day? Can I ever relax?_

Shin walked to me and said, "I'm sorry, Max."

"No," I replied, "I'm sorry for dragging you into this."

She rubbed my back, "I know, but that's why I'm here, to carry your burden with you."

I wept, "Why do I do this? Why do I need to go alone?"

Shin hugged me, turning me to face her. "You don't need to. I am willing to stand with you."

Mala stepped forward saying, "As am I."

"I second that," said Ras.

I dried my tears. "Ok. Let's go kill a King."

* * *

Oryx stood at his altar, staring at the headless body of Xivu Arath. He bellowed to his three lieutenants in the language of Darkness, "EXPLAIN THIS!"

The Colossus started with, "M-m-my L-l-l-lord, it w-w-was the Warlock."

The Ogre continued, "Shin Malphur, she has been altered by the Necrochasm's ashes and has beheaded your sister."

Oryx began to weep, but forced back the tears. "GO, MY HANDS, AND BRING ME THE HEADS OF THE WARLOCK AND HIS HUNTER!"


	40. Bane of the King

BANE OF THE KING

As soon as we got back to the Tower, we brought the head to Eris, where she carved out the three eyes of Xivu and handed them to me, Shin, and Ras. "Remember Guardians, all of this was set in motion a long time ago. He calls out, and the Darkness answers."

"Alright!" said the Warmind, "Let's go!"

"Not so fast, Ras," said Shin, "You and Malahayahti need to work on the Fusion Core. Max and I will handle the Taken King."

"But why?"

"Because I don't want more than one Guardian to die while we're facing Oryx." Shin pulled out her Void Bow, copied it, and gave one to Malahayahti.

"Thanks, Shin!"

"You're welcome," said the Hunter. With that, Shin and I left for orbit and set a course for the Dreadnaught. On the way there, Shin piloted while I sat in the passenger's seat. She said, "Max, we're about to dive into the belly of the beast. I want to make sure that you're ready."

"Of course I am."

She turned to me and said, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"It's ok to let your emotions out."

"I'm fine."

Shin began to lace our fingers until we approached Saturn. She guided the ship to the Hull Breach and we touched down at our patrol beacon. Cayde blurted over the comms, "Alright, let's run through a checklist: Creepy sidekick, check; Rouge-ish lieutenant, check; Overbearing commander, check; Wise and boring wizard, check..."

I heard Ikora shout, "I'M NOT BORING! HAVE YOU SEEN MY KILL/DEATH RATIO?"

Cayde continued with, "And my two favorite Guardians, my greatest success stories, check! Ok then, Let's go kill a King!"

After collecting a few more Calcified Fragments in both the Hull Breach and Hall of Souls, we arrived in the Mausoleum, where the Rupture opened up for us. Eris said, "The Rupture can sense the soul you hold, you are Ascendant!"

I looked at Shin, said, "Well, here goes nothing!" and jumped through the portal. As we landed in a huge hallway on the other side, I could feel my Light being drained slowly. "Shin, do you feel that?"

"Yeah," she said, "take my hand," and she laced our fingers. When that happened, our Light began to protect each other. She began to laugh, "I always thought that we would take a stroll at some point."

"Oh, yeah?" I asked curiously.

"Yeah," she continued, "I just never thought that it would be on Oryx's Dreadnaught."

I chuckled, "So instead of a beach or mountaintop, we get a war zone to proclaim our love."

She giggled, "We're on a mission to kill a King, and instead we're killing time!" Both of us laughed out loud as we passed throughout the halls and approached A large room with an hourglass shaped platform, two sets of curving stairs to either side of the entrance and one set at the exit, and two circular platforms towards the front, surrounded by three layers of fractured, revolving ring platforms. As soon as we entered the room, Taken Hobgoblins, Vandals, and Thrall began to spawn. She looked at me and said, "Ready?"

I nodded, "3..."

"2..." she replied. Thrall began to climb the steps.

We shouted, "1!" and let go of each other. I drew my Mythoclast, Shin pulled out her Hawkmoon and Thorn, and we tore up the incoming Thrall. The Hobgoblins and Vandals began to snipe us, and we were running out of Light. We joined hands once again and marched towards the Taken; using our free hands, we killed the snipers and moved forward to the next room, which was smaller, circular, and divided into a lower half and an upper half which were connected via stairs to our left and right.

The doors closed behind us and the Image of Oryx boomed, "YOU TWO ARE THE LAST HOPE OF LIGHT!?"

Shin and I looked at the Image in the eyes and said, "Yes we are!"

Oryx laughed, "I HAVE TAKEN ENTIRE GALAXIES! I AM REVERED AND PRAISED BY ALL! SOON, YOU AND YOUR CITY WILL BOW TO ME!"

The Rupture blazed to life and the Colossus and Ogre walked out of it. The Taken Goblins came next, protecting the Colossus. Shin and I dealt with them, then hid behind a stone for cover. She locked and loaded her musky sniper and said, "Hold on to my shoulder, I'll focus on the Colossus."

"Alright, I'll take care of the Ogre."

She stood up and fired three shots into its head. Oddly, the magazine reloaded itself after the third shot, leaving Shin to fire all 18 bullets at the Colossus. Its head exploded and its body dissolved into the ground. Meanwhile, I began to burn one the Ogre's arms and its jaw with the Mythoclast. However, when the Colossus died, the Ogre charged at us, and we ran all over the place (yes, holding hands.) More Goblins appeared out of nowhere and Shin tethered all of them, including the Ogre, to the ground. She said, "Your turn," and she hopped on my back.

"Hold on!" I said as I fell into Stormtrance. I electrocuted the Goblins first, then directed my electricity at the Ogre, avoiding its gaze and slams. Eventually, I destroyed its eye, and its body also dissolved before my eyes. The Rupture opened again as I came back to my senses. Shin landed on the ground. "Shall we kill a King?" I asked.

Shin answered with, "I thought you'd never ask." We walked up the steps to the Rupture and we entered it together.

We landed in a tiny room, which held a Calcified Fragment that I picked up, then we walked through the halls, arriving in the same room as the second one on our first mission inside the Dreadnaught. Only this time, we were opposite to a semi-circle which leads to the Altar of Oryx via a dark passage. Oryx's voice boomed, "COME FOR ME, WARRIOR OF LIGHT, AND BE REBORN AT MY ALTAR!"

I gripped Shin's hand. She shouted, "OW!"

"Sorry, I'm just nervous."

She led me down to the semi-circle. "Max, there's something that you ought to know."

"Ok."

"I saw something else in the Vault of Glass." She placed her hands on my head and I saw a few visions. "I held these visions back from you, but I think you need to know now."

I opened my eyes, "So..."

Shin nodded. "I'm sorry, Max," she kissed me, this time through her helmet, and said, "but this is good-bye."

I nodded, trying to hold back my tears. "Good-bye, Shin Malphur." We locked hands again and walked to the Altar. When we arrived, Oryx floated limp a few meters in front of us. "Oh, that's rich!" he said, "The Warlock is in love with his Hunter!"

I corrected him, "She's not my Hunter, She's her own person! The only thing scary about you is how you addressed her as my girlfriend first, and a fellow Guardian last!"

"YOU COME BEFORE MY ALTAR TO INSULT ME!?"

Shin shouted, "WE KILLED YOUR SON, AND WE WON'T HAVE ANY TROUBLE KILLING YOU TOO!"

Oryx began to wake up, his Altar blazed to life as he spawned his wings and sword named Willbreaker. "ENOUGH! I WILL FINISH WHAT CROTA BEGAN, WITH OR WITHOUT YOUR HELP!" Taken began to spawn, and Shin killed all of them with her Hawkmoon and Thorn. I focused on Oryx with my Mythoclast, but he blasted Orbs of Darkness at us. Shin fired her arrow and tethered Oryx. The Taken King tried to steal our light, but we shot him just in time before he could detonate it. He disappeared and Taken Thrall spawned out of nowhere, and we expired every last one of them.

Oryx appeared on the far right side of his Altar, beside some stolen tech resembling Vex or Warmind technology. "YOUR LIGHT SHALL BE MINE, AND I WILL BE YOUR GOD!" He fired more Bolts of Darkness at us, and we managed to dodge every single one. Of course, we would run into a Vandal or a Captain, but we would kill them before they could kill us. After a while, we directed our attacks at the Taken King, and he responded with surrounding us with burning Dark bombs, but we ran out of their radius before they exploded.

He disappeared, then reappeared in his original position. Taken Minotaurs spawned this time, blending in with their surroundings until they attacked. We fired back, killing all of the Minotaurs, and damaging Oryx. He then spawned two dark claws that snatched us into the Darkness Dimension. "You are Max and Shin, Warriors of Light, Banes of the Vex," he said in a gentle voice, then changed his pitch, "and Prince-slayers."

"Let me guess, we've been Taken?" inquired Shin.

As we struggled, he continued to speak. "Yes. Now set down your weapons, you don't need to fear."

I shouted, "WE HAVE EVERY RIGHT TO!"

"So what drives you to act in that way? What propels both of you outside of duty?" I could feel him invading my mind. "Ahh, love! You love each other!"

"Yeah, so?" we asked.

"I have a blade for you," he tempted, "It can show you paths that you thought weren't possible. It's called [two as one]."

I lashed out, "I REFUSE!"

Shin followed suit, "SO DO I!"

We closed our eyes and focused on keeping each other leavened in this dimension. I walked closer to Shin, and she walked to me. As we embraced, a force field of Light surrounded both of us, and it was strong enough to shatter the prescribed blade and the surrounding Darkness. Oryx bellowed, "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!? YOU'VE RUINED EVERYTHING!"

"Sorry Oryx," said Shin, "but you can't go converting people to your religion."

"ENOUGH! I! WILL! HAVE! VENGEANCE!" Taken Hive spawned, and we dealt with them easily. Oryx came out of the edge of the dimension, hovered over us, and slammed down with his sword. We dodged it and tried to damage Oryx before he flew up and away. We killed the Taken Fallen that spawned, Oryx repeated his swing, and we repeated our damage. This time, Taken Vex appeared, but they too were easily dispatched. Oryx slammed down again, but this time, Shin fired her void arrow and tethered the Taken King to the ground. "AGAIN!?" He turned to Shin, "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" She pulled out her Golden Gun, but he swung his sword and sent the Hunter into one of the four pillars. The gun solidified.

Shin screamed, "AAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHHH!"

I heard her back crack and her neck snap. "SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN!" I looked at a laughing Oryx and lost all control. Anger pulsed through my veins, irritation began pumping my heart, and rage fueled my body. "YOU TOOK SHIN'S LIFE, AND I WILL TAKE YOURS!" I fell into my Stormtrance and charged. Oryx tried to slam down again, but I dodged it and directed my electricity to Oryx. He tried to block it with his Willbreaker, but I aimed my focus higher than the sword. He charged, my Arc condensed into another sword to counter Willbreaker. I stood my ground and sent the Taken King into another pillar, but it didn't break his neck. I charged at him, he blocked my attacks, and I blocked his. I held my ground again, then rage took over, and I slashed at Oryx. We took to the air. He failed to deflect my attacks to his arms, then he dropped his sword, and I stabbed him in the heart. "IT'S OVER!" I shouted.

Falling to the ground as the dimension barriers dissolved around us. "No," he groaned, "It has just begun!" He took all of the Darkness from Willbreaker and thrust it into his chest. He began to expand without end, "YOU CANNOT KILL ME! I AM A GOD!"

I launched a Nova Bomb into the impact on his chest, but he laughed as he warped out of his Altar and into who-knows-where. I snapped back to reality. "Shin!" I rushed over to her body, crying. "Shin? Please, don't be dead. I'm begging you!" I felt her lack of pulse. "Shin, I know that I was a coward before, I know that I was weak, but without you, I am nothing. Please, don't be dead." I reached into my pocket for my last Mote of Light, infused it with a part of each element, and pressed the Mote into her flat chest.

She began to breathe slowly. I sighed with relief. As her breathing quickened, she began to stand and glow orange and gold. "What's happening to me?" I watched with shock as she stretched her arms away from her body, lifted her head to the sky, and became engulfed in fire. Her cloak was singed into ashes, replaced by flaming robes that almost touched the floor. In her whole regeneration, Shin never screamed. _In her first moment, she seemed as wholly luminescent as the Sun, and I wished that I could be like her._ Shin looked at me with confusion. "How? Why?"

A second later, I understood. _One will die by the hands of a warlord, and Shin will rise as a Warlock. The Warlock of Legend!_


	41. The Sword-Logic

THE SWORD-LOGIC

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?" bellowed the Dark Lord. "THE WARLOCK SENT YOU BACK TO YOUR THRONE WORLD!?"

The Echo protested, "He's strong with the Light, but that isn't the only difference!"

"THEN TELL ME, WHAT ON EARTH HAPPENED!?"

Xylar walked in saying, "Oryx has failed to properly kill another Guardian, a Hunter."

"I DRAINED HER LIGHT!" protested the silhouette.

"AND MAX BROUGHT HER BACK TO LIFE, AS A WARLOCK!" shouted The Timeless Vex.

The Dark Lord froze, "Oryx?" he inquired, "Did this happen?" The Taken King was silent. "ORYX!"

The Echo shouted at the top of his lungs, "YES! IT HAPPENED!"

"THEN HOLD YOUR GROUND! KEEP THE PLANETS UNDER YOUR CONTROL! DO NOT, ABSOLUTELY DO NOT, THINK ABOUT KILLING THEM!"

"WHY CAN'T I!?"

"BECAUSE OF PLAN B!"

* * *

Shin and I stood at the Altar, looking at each other in amazement and bewilderment for a while. "Wait, I'm a Warlock? But how?"

I inferred, "You probably weren't resurrected from the dead when you became a Guardian."

"Yeah, but Jess..."

"...wanted power from the Light," I finished, "That's probably why she was corrupted, she never had a strong connection with the Light. As for us, Oryx can try to take, but he couldn't succeed with a Ghoul, let alone with a relationship."

Shin snapped her fingers, "THAT'S why he couldn't take us! We haven't been attuned to power!"

"Exactly!" Then our eyes fell upon Willbreaker and we walked towards it. "But I'm afraid that we're going to have to learn the Sword-Logic."

Shin stared at me, "Why?"

"We barely defeated Oryx. I had to tap into my anger to do that." I looked up at her, "I scratched the surface of this logic, but it was raw and untamed. If we want to kill off the Taken King once and for all, then we need to understand his strengths and weaknesses. This is the only way to find them."

"How do you know that?" she challenged.

"I don't, but I'm just guessing."

"He's not wrong," said a familiar voice.

We turned to find Eris approaching Willbreaker. "Eris? How did you get here?"

Ras and Mala appeared behind her. "We heard on the radio that someone died," began Ras.

"So, we flew in to help!" finished Mala. She then stared at Shin, "Wait, you're a Warlock?"

Shin was unsure of where she was going with this. "Yes?"

Mala looked amazed, "That's so cool! I want to be a Warlock!"

Eris glared at Malahayahti, "No, child! Hunters are better."

I gave Eris a look and said, "I'm sorry, but whose journal did you read from to save our lives? Who are the only ones that can resurrect themselves from the dead? Who can enter Mind Palaces without breaking a sweat? And who learned more about the Darkness than the entire City?"

Eris threw her knife in retaliation, but Shin caught it with telekinesis and said, "Oh, that's cool!"

Eris growled, "A Warlock doesn't use a knife because they do not understand Sword-Logic."

Malahayahti asked, "What is Sword-Logic?"

Eris sighed and began her speech.

* * *

 _In the Beginning, there were three individual queens. All of them were powerful in their own right, and all of them wanted to rule the Universe. The First Queen writes a Book of Law and gave her people liberty. The Second Queen built a massive Tower for her people to gaze at the stars, study the heavens, and explore the cosmos. But the Third Queen raised an army and proceeded to take away the liberty and freedom that everyone craves, enslaving everyone and everything to her iron-fisted rule, and she reigned for a long time._ _But the First and Second Queens rose again, this time with their own armies, and fought against the Third. These Three Queens will be forever locked in a combat with 'swords' until one discovers the cannon, the plague, or the killing word._

 _This is the Sword-Logic at its core: to become the strongest force and to cut away all weaknesses, forever creasing the Universe by your blade until only your will remains to govern it. Should you fail to do so, there will be another force that will kill and replace you, carry out their will until someone overthrows them, and the cycle will keep repeating itself over and over again. This is the Law of the Darkness, This is the Force of Oryx, This is the Rule of Xylar, and This Sword-Logic is a gift meant for you._

* * *

The Sub-Mind shivered, "That sounds scary!"

"But it's what we're living in right now."

I spoke up. "The 2016 elections. We had to overthrow Donald Drumpf before it was too late."

"But it was, wasn't it?" asked Rasputin.

I nodded, "In the end, I had to use the one weapon that I hoped would never be fired: an annihilation missile."

"Sword-Logic," said Crota's Bane

Shin stepped in, "When the House of Wolves failed to negotiate with Mara Sov, I launched the Harbingers on the Fallen House and their Kell. Then, Jess, Leviathan, and I hunted down their Barons, Archons, Prime Servitors, and henchmen. Then we did the same to the Houses of Stone, Devils, and Kings."

Eris nodded, "Sword-Logic. You guys already know the basics, but now it's time to put your skills to the test. Break this sword." All 5 of us touched the top of the sword and the stone blade to break away. As the pieces fell, a dark-purple crystal core remained. "All of Willbreaker's power," she continued, "inside that one crystal that was tainted 4000 years ago." When Shin touched it, the crystal divided itself into 3 smaller elemental cores remained: one Arc blue, one Solar orange, and one Void purple.

"Interesting!" I said, amazed by Shin's actions, "Shin, you have unique powers! To divide a strong crystal into 3, no one can do that!"

Shin said, "Thank you, Max!" and she gave the Arc core to Malahayahti, the Void core to me, and kept the solar core for herself.

Eris said, "Ok, enough chit-chat. We need to move!" and we teleported back to our ships.


	42. Reunion

REUNION

We got back to the Tower, where the Speaker announced that he was stepping down from his current position, that Ikora Rey and Zavala have been selected as candidates for the role of Speaker. Ikora Rey spoke to the Citizens and Guardians who wanted unity among the people, protection of rights, and strength from the Light, whereas Zavala campaigned for a larger wall around the City and said, "The Fallen will pay for it!" As we walked to the stairs, we saw posters all over the Tower Plaza saying, 'Stronger Together! Ikora/Vance 2761' and 'Make The City Great Again! Zavala/Hideo'. Eris scoffed, "I could do a better job!"

Shin retorted, "How so?"

Eris stuttered for a minute, "Just...just give me a few weeks."

I looked at the posters and said, "Nothing has changed since 2016! Were there any other candidates?"

"Ouros competed against Ikora in the primary, firing up the newcomers and youth to expand health care, vouch for tuition-free college, and make sure that the billionaires paid their fair share for trashing the economy."

"I knew a guy like that, his name was Bernie Sanders."

"Did he win?"

I heaved a heavy sigh, "No."

Eris stared at the ground, "So, I can no longer help you on your swords, but Shaxx can. He is one of few Guardians who are well-educated in forging swords and he is the only one who is currently available at the time. He'll lead you on the right path."

Shaxx walked up to us, "Yes, yes, I can help you here," He looked at our Willbreaker cores, "Oryx's sword itself! In three elements, no less! This is incredible!"

I asked, "Can you forge them into swords?"

"Not with our materials," said Eris, "These cores need a rare substance called Hadium."

"And this 'Hadium' can only be found on the Dreadnaught?"

"Yes."

Ras stepped forward, "I'll go find it!" He ran back to his ship at once.

Shaxx felt each of the cores. "They'll need some other materials as well. The Arc needs some Spinmetal, Solar needs Helium Filaments, and Void needs Relic Iron."

Shin nodded, "Alright, we know about our missions, so let's get going!" As soon as I gave more Calcified Fragments to Eris, we ran back to our ship and went straight to orbit.

In the ship, Malahayahti tinkered with her Fusion Core, using extra parts from the ship to modify and simplify it. She paused for a moment to admire her handiwork, then she said, "Umm, I'm missing some components."

I walked over to check, "Which components?" She gave it to me. After looking and turning it for a while, I said, "Aha! You need three components from WARSATS on Earth, Mars, and the Moon!"

She glanced at the bottom of the Core, "And a Golden-Age blueprint, and a Heavy Power Coupling," she huffed and said, "And we can't find most of those on this Ship."

I pulled out my Machine Gun and said, "Will this work?"

Mala nodded, "Yes!" and she began tearing it apart, removing each component and tossing them aside, until she found a Heavy Power Coupling. "Found it!" She plugged it into the Core and said, "1 down, 4 to go!"

Shin jokingly said, "You two need some alone time?"

Both of us shouted, "No!"

"I'm kidding! Besides, Max is my boyfriend."

Mala said, "I know, and for the record, I'm Asexual and Aromantic."

Shin spun in her seat, "What does that mean?"

"It means that I cannot feel sexual or romantic attraction."

"So, you prefer friends over relationships?"

Mala replied with, "Well, I prefer tinkering and engineering over anything, but friends are nice, too."

Shin's eyes widened as she turned back to the controls. "While Rasputin is gathering Hadium Flakes on the Dreadnaught to forge our swords, we will be hunting for other materials to enhance our swords' strength. Max will go to Mars for Relic Iron; Mala, you'll land on Earth for Spinmetal; and I'll touch down on the Moon for Helium Filaments."

Mala was dropped off first, Shin left for the Moon, then I took the controls and flew to Mars.

As we touched down on our respective planets, we ran across the surfaces looking for our materials and trying to find WARSATS. Shin found hers first on Archer's Line and protected it as she tried to find the core component, then Mala found hers in the Skywatch and was joined by a random Hunter on his Sparrow. As they fought the waves of Fallen, Hive, and Taken, I could hear their conversation on the comms: "So, come here often?" asked the Hunter.

"No," replied Mala, "I'm just here for the WARSAT."

"Well, do you want to go for a drink after this?"

"I don't drink."

"That's fine. How about a movie?"

"I'm not interested in you."

The Hunter paused for a moment and said, "How about your fireteam?"

Mala was caught off-guard, "Excuse me? Have you been stalking me?"

The Hunter said, "I've actually got my eye on the whole team."

Shin, Mala, Ras, and I shouted, "WHAT!?"

"Yeah, I want to date all three of you!"

I thought to myself, _Who has he seen?_

Mala scoffed, "You won't get far with me or Shin, I'm Ace and Aro, and she's got a boyfriend. However, you might have some luck with my dad." She climbed on top of the WARSAT and began to tear it apart.

"Ace, huh? I knew someone like that, he was very loyal to his team, politically motivated against fascism."

"Do you know what happened to him?"

"I don't know, possibly old age. I was killed by a traitor, Erik Larson."

"Erik? Jared's younger brother?"

"The same. He kept his allegiance to Donald Drumpf a secret until we arrived at the bunker; it feels like it was yesterday."

Mala tore out the core component and plugged it into her fusion core. "Cool!" She spoke into the comms, "Shin, do you have your WARSAT core?"

"Yes, I'm just collecting Helium Filaments, then I'll warp to Max."

"Same. Max?"

I said, "No WARSAT yet, but I have my Relic Iron."

"Coolio! I'll look for Spinmetal."

The Hunter stopped, "Wait, you spoke to Max!?"

Mala shifted, "Yes?"

"Can I speak to him?"

"Channel frequency is 90.9."

The Hunter switched his radio channels and shouted, "MAX! Do you remember me?"

"Um, no."

"It's me! Your little brother!"

My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. "MARCUS!?"


	43. Subroutine IKELOS

SUBROUTINE IKELOS

Marcus was amazed, "I am SO HAPPY! It's so good to hear your voice again, Max!"

"Same," I replied, "Do you remember what happened on November 8th, 2016?"

Marcus turned grim, "Yeah, the sleazebag named Drumpf won the electoral college! Man, we were pissed!"

"Would you believe me if I told you that history is repeating itself in the Tower?"

Marcus paused for a while, then said, "Zavala vs. Ikora? Yeah, I've heard."

"So you know how it's going down?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

Shin butted in, "If you two are done talking about politics, we need to get back to work."

I said, "Right, we need to-" At that moment, a WARSAT crashed down in the Scablands, "Hold on! I've got a WARSAT!" I hopped onto my Sparrow and rode to the impact site, but a Titan was already standing there, fighting off Cabal. I approached the WARSAT and started melting Vex with the Mythoclast as they spawned. The Titan asked, "Have you heard about the elections?"

I replied, "Yeah, I'm thinking about voting for Ikora."

"Really? You're choosing her?"

"I take it that you're voting for Zavala?"

She shook her head, "No, I wanted Ouros to compete against him, but the media blacked out on her because the Future War Cult already chose Ikora Rey in secret! And don't get me started on New Monarchy! They don't care about the City, they just want complete control over the government! They'll make the City hate again if you ask me!"

I nodded, "History repeats itself once again!"

The Titan was curious, "How so?"

"Similar things have happened about 745 years ago."

Through her helmet, her eyes widened. "Are you Max Prodigy?"

I looked at her, "Yes, why do you ask?"

"Max Prodigy, the Warlock of Legend?"

I jumped on top of the WARSAT and started to tear it apart. "No. Shin is."

"But you killed Crota and destroyed the Glass Throne."

I dove for the core, "Um, yeah, but Shin was there as well."

"Sure, but you faced off Oryx and lived to tell the tale!"

I tore out the component, "But Shin..." I stopped as rose to the surface again. "Yeah, I did. But Shin kept me in balance."

"Shin Malphur?"

"The same."

The Titan inquired, "Where is she?"

"She's on her own quest." I jumped out the WARSAT and into the sand.

"Well, what about you?"

"Same deal."

"Why are you hunting for a WARSAT?"

I hesitated, "It's for Malahayahti's...thing."

She was intrigued, "What sort of thing?"

I stumbled with my words, "It's...top secret."

"Alright," she said, "I'm coming with you."

"What?"

"You need me for whatever it is that you're doing. You need a partner while Shin is away."

I sighed, "Fine, but I need to talk to the others." I switched on the comms and said, "Can you hear me?"

Shin said, "Yeah, are you done with your scavenging?"

"Yeah, I've got my Relic Iron," then I looked at the Titan, "and a new team member."

Mark said, "Ooooh, what's their name?"

I nodded to the Titan, "Your name?"

"Annalie."

"Her name's Annalie, and wipe that ridiculous grin off your face, Marcus!"

He cried, "Aw, come on!"

I turned back to Annalie, "Channel frequency is 90.9."

She adjusted her headset accordingly then said, "How's it going, guys?"

Marcus beamed, "I'm fine, but I'd be better when I see you."

Annalie turned to me and shook her head. I mouthed, 'I know, right?'

"Actually, I can't wait to see ALL of you!" he corrected.

The Titan's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "OMNISEXUAL?"

"Yeah, jealous?"

"No, I'm just not interested in you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. In fact, Max is the only one who looks appealing."

I staggered back and fell into the sand. Shin barked, "HANDS OFF OF MY BOYFRIEND!"

"Relax, Shin," I said in a diplomatic voice, "I wasn't thinking about dating her!"

Annalie looked at me, "You're Shin's boyfriend!? How did you get so lucky!?"

I shrugged, "I don't know." I stood up, "But I know one thing: we need to pick up Shin, Mala, and Mark from their errands."

"Ok, then what?"

"We'll find out." The ship hovered above us and we were teleported on board. Then, piloting the ship over to Earth and the Moon, we grabbed Shin, Mala, and Mark, and we handed our components to the Sub-Mind.

"So, the next thing that we need is a Golden-Age blueprint," she declared, "And I think I know of a place on Venus."

"Is it the Ishtar Archive?" asked Shin.

"Yes," Mala gasped, "Do you have a blueprint?"

"My Ghost does," and Shin pulled out her Ghost to download the blueprint.

After all of the parts were attached, Malahayahti said, "Perfect! Now I just need to readjust a few wires, plug in an inductor or two, maybe use a few amplifiers and NAND gates, and that should be good! Time to start it!" Once she pressed the button, the core started to glow white. "Interesting, I just activated a new subroutine named 'IKELOS'. Now all I need is the shell and..." an explosion emanated from the Warmind's bunker "...that explosion could mean only one thing."

"What's that?"

"The Devils have resurrected their Shock And Ballistic Electronic Raider!"

"The WHAT?" we asked.

"S.A.B.E.R. It's the only thing that can crack Warmind bunkers!"

Shin let out a grin, "Well then, let's go kill it!"

Ikora Rey butted in, "After you help us with rescuing a Guardian."

I asked, "Where are they?"

"Deep in the Vault of Glass."

"Alright," I said, "Ras, are you done?"

"Yes," he said.

"Then get your bunker in working order! Meet with Marcus and Mala in the Forgotten Shore, they'll explain later."

"And you?"

"Shin, Annalie, and I will go to Venus to find a Guardian lost in time."

"Alright, I'll be there in a minute."

Mala and Mark waited two whole minutes for Rasputin to show up, then raced over to the main entrance that was outside the Hive Grotto. Rasputin inputted his code, and the doors opened. As they ran through the tunnels, he said, "If the S.A.B.E.R. reaches the central complex, then we have 2 minutes before the entire Cosmodrome explodes, or worse."

"Like 'Warmind guns pointed at the City' worse?" asked Mark.

"I was going to say solar system."

Marcus widened his eyes, "For you, I won't let that happen."

Rasputin sighed, "I'm not interested."

Once they reached their first room in the bunker, the Hunter said, "Oh, right, because you were interested in Charlemagne. Hate to break it to you Ras, but he had a wife and two children."

"WHAT!?"

"Yeah, he married Aphrodite and created two Sub-minds."

Rasputin clutched Mark's throat, "When!?"

Mark chuckled, "Oh, you and I are going to get along nicely."

He tightened his grip, "ANSWER ME MARK!"

"Ok, ok," choked the Hunter, "They were married in 2584, I was the one who married them, and you're killing me." Ras dropped Mark to the ground. "Aphrodite was the first to fall to the Vex, and with her went Eros and Pippin. They died on Mercury."

"Why?"

"I don't know, something to do with their fascination of your kin; they wanted to become like you." Marcus stood and said, "Looks like we're trapped in here until we find a way out."

"Yeah, but whatever you do, don't destroy the-"

Mala threw a Voidwall grenade down a coolant hatch, and the vent doors opened up. "Sorry dad, it had to be done."

They ran through the ventilation shafts, descended into another room into the two-lined tunnel but were stopped by Arc streams flowing across these lines. "Oh great, what do we do now?" asked Mark's Ghost.

"What we always do, push forward!" answered Mark. He weaved around the piles of junk to avoid the streams and get the Arc source. As soon as that happened, Exploding Shanks dropped from the ceiling. Mark pulled out his Sidearm and fired at the Shanks as he weaved again. Mala fired her Bad Juju at the Sniper Shanks at the end of the line, and Ras watched out for more surprises. Mark placed the source into a socket, and the streams disappeared.

In the next room, Dregs, Vandals, and various Shanks ambushed the strike team. "MOVE!" shouted the Warmind. He took out his Hammer of Sol and charged at the Fallen, lobbing it at everything he could see, and ending his supercharge with a slam on a Servitor's eye, destroying it. They ran through some more hallways until they reached Bunker War-4, and proceeded to one of the side doors to the testing chamber. As soon as they fell into it, Rasputin typed a prompt into the system, drawing the Servitors out, and destroying them. "Hold on, guys! I've got a lock on the S.A.B.E.R. It's right below us, but I can pull him out of his hole!" He typed in a prompt, and the hatch in the center opened up.

The S.A.B.E.R.-II popped up and prepared to fire its sniper at the Guardians. Mark prepped his Omolon Scout Rifle and aimed at the tiny canisters in the Shank's front. Turret shanks spawned out of the side tubes and surrounded them, firing at will. As they avoided the barrage of bullets, Ras fired at the canisters from his Vision of Confluence, rupturing them and causing the S.A.B.E.R.'s sniper to explode. The large Shank swapped to Void machine guns and destroyed the heatsinks surrounding the chamber. The alarms blared, signaling that the Bunker was overheating and all of the coolant vents are blocked off. Mala fired her Bad Juju at any Exploding Shanks that popped out from any of the hatches, then fired a Void Arrow at the S.A.B.E.R. to pin it down, and everyone unloaded at the Void guns, sending explosions across the Shank's armor and exposing its shock cores. "ПРЕДУПРЕЖДЕНИЕ!" screamed the alarms, "БУНКЕР ОХЛАЖДЕНИЯ ПРОТОКОЛ НАРУШЕНИЕ! ДЕТОНАЦИЯ за 60 секунд!"

The Warmind shouted, "That's not good!"

"What's wrong?" asked Mark.

"This Bunker is going to explode!"

"It'll bury the Shank..."

"...AND US WITH IT!" yelled Mala.

"ДЕТОНАЦИЯ за 30 секунд!" shouted the alarms.

Mark fired two rockets at the S.A.B.E.R., blowing it up, and said, "Let's go then!"

The alarms blared again, "ДЕТОНАЦИЯ за 15 секунд!

Mala typed in a command prompt, which brought forth an empty Warmind Fusion Rifle shell that looked different from the other Dvalin shells, different in the sense that it was heavier and more polygonal than the rest. She took it, warped back to the ship, and the other two followed suit. Ras drove the ship away as the Bunker's explosion ripped apart the Forgotten Shore. "No turning back," she said as she inserted the IKELOS core. When she closed and locked the shell, the reticle said "SUBROUTINE IKELOS: Status = Complete. ROUTINE MIDNIGHT EXIGENT: Status = Still in Progress." She huffed and said, "We still have more work to do."


	44. Lost to Time

LOST TO TIME

As we raced for Venus, Shin and Anna began chatting about the elections, arguing on whether or not they should vote for Ikora, but both agreed that Zavala was dangerous due to his views on the working class, Exos, and the Reef. Equally dangerous was his running mate, Executor Hideo, who signed laws banning Gay Marriage, legalizing racism and shock lynching, even going so far as to introduce a propaganda TV station called 'Mox News'. They claim that a bigger wall will protect the city, but the three of us knew better. Walls serve two purposes: 1. To keep people out (the emphasis of Zavala and Drumpf's campaigns), and 2. To keep people in (like a prison or concentration camp). I wanted to shout to the crowds of the City, "Hey! Do you realize that Zavala is promoting the rise of Fascism? Do you realize that his experience rests only in brutality and never diplomacy?" I wanted to, but then I would be telling everyone something that they already know.

Shin piloted the ship to the Waking Ruins, and all three of us landed on the surface. Once we did, a scratchy mechanical voice phased in and out of our comms. "This...a message...the Vault of Glass has gone dark...creatures are devour...they'll come for the Light."

Ikora justified her claim with, "That's why you're here."

We ran up the terrain to the Vault's door, opened due to our Raid a few months ago. As we ran inside, the mysterious voice said, "I...where I am. My name was Praedyth. If anyone is...the Vex are acting stranger than usual, must be...need to find out what they're up to."

"Praedyth," said Ikora, "That name is familiar. References in armor, weapons, and margins of texts."

Anna asked, "Who's Praedyth?"

Ikora answered with, "There were three Guardians that entered the Vault of Glass, for reasons unknown. Kabr led the team as they descended into the Templar's Well, but were met with the brute force of its master and its Oracles. Praedyth and Kabr took the full blast of negation, but Pahanin escaped just in time."

We delved into the Well in the middle of an intense battle between the Vex and Taken, then killed them all. After two more waves of running and shooting, I fell into Stormtrance and electrocuted the Vex and Taken that were on site, Shin was killed, but self-rezzed mid-battle and started destroying the ads with her Fusion and Firebolt Grenades, and Anna found a group of Vex and Taken to use her Fist of Havoc on. I asked, "Ikora, if the Taken get their hands on the Vault of Glass, then what would happen to the Vex and their worlds?"

"Possibly Taken away by Oryx," she answered.

"I thought that the Hive had an alliance with the Vex," proclaimed Shin.

The Warlock Vanguard agreed, "I thought so, too. It must've ended with he took half of the Vex."

"It did," confirmed Praedyth, "The Vex agreed to protect...so long as the Hive didn't...but Oryx changed tactics. When he took the strongest Vex...and the Vault went dark."

As we descended down to the Gorgon's Labyrinth, Anna kept muttering to herself, something about Mercury and the Black Garden. Once we reached the bottom, there was a Taken Hydra that began to fire at us, and we took cover. Anna's Ghost said, "That Hydra is causing the block! Kill it, or we'll never find Praedyth!" The Hydra summoned Taken Goblins, Hobgoblins, Minotaurs, and Blighted Oracles to aid it. Shin sniped the Oracles with her Black Spindle, then focused on the Hydra's head while Anna and I cleaned up the ads. More Minotaurs spawned on top of us, and we moved to avoid their Torch Hammers and slams. Anna was caught in one, but she shot it down with her shotgun. After firing at a few Oracles, the Hydra was stunned once again, and Shin targeted its eye, crippling its life and dropping a Simulation Core as it died. "That's it for the Taken!" shouted Jared, "High fives all around!"

"That's it! They're closing the door!" then Praedyth was gone.

"Signal lost, but the source is this way," said Alex, and we followed her to a skeleton in the middle of a room. "This is him, the Warlock who was known as Praedyth."

Anna mourned, "Ikora, I'm sorry that we couldn't bring him back, all of us are."

"Do not apologize," she said, "You have restored his name from oblivion. In a way, he will live on in the Tower Archi-" The Vault began to rumble, and we almost lost our balance. "What was that?"

"I don't know," said Shin, "but it doesn't sound good."

Praedyth came back on the comms, "It's the Vex! Reach the Inner Sanctum, Guardians!"

We ran through the exit to the chasm, then crossed it using the platforms. Praedyth began to speak, "The Vex see nothing but a pattern, a pattern that needs to be upheld and copied. Anything that obstructs it or sticks out in the slightest detail is cut away and left to die."

"Conformity at its finest," I said.

"Yes!" confirmed Praedyth, "That's why they need to be stopped! To preserve the beauty of our worlds!"

When we reached the sanctum, our Ghosts cloaked us so that we would approach the ritual safely. There, we saw a giant six-horned Hydra with six additional heads attached to the back of its spine floating where the Glass Throne used to be. In the middle of the sanctum was the head of Atheon, and off to the left and right sides sat the Goblins and Hobgoblins in the middle of a 'prayer' or something. I recognized the Hydra right off the bat. "Xylar!" I whispered.

Shin whispered back, "Who?"

"The Vex Overlord, the one who resides in the Vex hive-mind, that's him!" Then I saw a Ghost floating around and taking pictures. _Evidence!_ I asked the Ghost through the comms, "Who are you?"

The Ghost floated to our level and whispered, "I'm Nightingale, Pahanin's Ghost."

"Why are you here?" asked Anna.

"I've been stuck here for a very long time, so I collected some footage for Lakshmi-2 and the Future War Cult."

"Well," said Shin, "I'd hate to break it to you but..."

"...elections. I saw it, too."

"They're starting to investigate Ikora and her Hidden, giving these pictures to Lakshmi would give Zavala and the New Monarchy even more incentive to imprison all of them!"

"I know, but look!" she motioned to the congregation of Vex, "They're resurrecting Atheon!"

"No," whispered Praedyth, "They're stealing his soul!"

"What do you mean?" I whispered.

"Atheon has the most valuable soul on hand, if only a sliver of it!"

"But how-" And that is when I realized that Atheon was no ordinary Axis Vex, Atheon was Kabr!


	45. Breaking Out

BREAKING OUT

Xylar held all seven of his eyes closed and concentrated on Atheon's head. _I know that you're in there Kabr, so come on out._ Then he felt a chill flowing around the Vault, _The Warlock! Let them walk into our trap!_

* * *

I remained outside of the sanctum with Shin, Anna, and Nightingale as we watched the head being disassembled and a pulsing white orb took its place. "The Soul of Kabr!" exclaimed Pahanin.

"I thought that Kabr poured his soul into the Aegis," I whispered to him.

"He poured the last of his Light and life into the Vault to create the Aegis, but his soul was stolen by The Templar to create Atheon," he corrected.

"So why are there Vex runes depicting Atheon's appearance throughout the timestream?" whispered Shin.

"Because the Vex can manipulate time to their liking. In one timeline, Atheon created the Vault, but in this one..."

"...The Vault created Atheon!" I finished.

Anna piped in, "Yeah, all of that is good, but we need to get going, like now!"

"Alright, let's go."

As we turned to walk out of the hallway to the sanctum, the doors to the chasm begun to close rapidly. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance once again, Mr. Prodigy!" echoed the Vex Overlord, "We never thought that you would be easy prey to catch!"

Our cloaks failed, we pulled out our primary weapons, and we charged at the Vex. Shin wielded her Hawkmoon and Last Word (which she picked up from the Altar of Oryx before leaving the Dreadnaught) and fired away at the Goblins and Hobgoblins. She said to Anna, "Catch!" and she threw her Thorn towards the Titan. Anna caught it by the handle and started killing Harpies with its bullets. I charged towards the Minotaurs and took them down with a Thunderstrike and a few shots from the Mythoclast.

Xylar's eyes blinked from red to blue, then said, "This is where you die, Max! I'd to see you survive against Atheon!" At that moment, the Vex Overlord disappeared, and in his place stood a fractured Time's Conflux.

Anna shouted, "RUN!" and we did so. Atheon carefully walked down the steps and fired its Torch Hammer. Unlike traditional Torch Hammers, this one fired balls of glass shrapnel. Shin and I backed away from the glass each time it fired, but Anna seemed unfazed by it. She fired the Thorn at its creases in the splinters and started to cripple the giant.

I realized that my Mythoclast would melt the splinters into whole sheets of glass, so I voted against it. My Praetorian Foil, however, had a swappable core. _But which core to choose_ _? Solar is out, for the usual reasons; Void would be unpredictable; I have no idea about the Arc, but it's worth a shot!_ I swapped the cores, while Shin jumped into action, and fired her dual hand cannons at Atheon. I fired 7 Arc Fusion shots at the lodged bullets in Atheon and electrified it. Annalie fired her Thorn again, this time in between the lightning bolts arcing through the bullets. Surprisingly enough, the poisonous bullets could amplify an electric current.

It wasn't long until Time's Conflux adjusted to the voltage and fired again. I fell into my Stormtrance, blinked towards the giant, and electrified all of the engraved bullets, overloading its system and shattering it into a million pieces. Just as it did, the entire Vault began to crumble around us.

"Let's get out of here, guys!" shouted Nightingale, and we did. We ran out the sanctum, up the time-phasing platforms, and through the Labyrinth, navigating through Vex disciples wherever we turned.

Upon reaching the end, I said, "How are going to get up there?"

Praedyth said, "Hold on to something," and we were lifted up to the ledge that came from the Templar's Well. We ran up the incline to the Well, where we encountered the same problem. Praedyth, once again, willed the Vault's tendrils to work in our favor. "Run! The Fate of the City, no, THE UNIVERSE, lies with you!"

We ran through the Trial of Kabr, just as boulders came crashing down over our heads. Shin and I could reflect some, but others were just too big for both of us. As soon as we saw the exit, the doors began to close. Shin shouted, "MOVE!" We barely escaped from the collapsing Vault. Anna came out first, I was second, and Shin was third. The large vibration caused me to fall down, face first into the grass if my wrists didn't block the way. I yelped. Shin ran over to me, "Are you alright?"

"I think so," but as soon as I could move my hands, I yelped again, "Nope! They still hurt!"

Shin examined my hands, "Oh dear, two broken wrists. I think I can help with that." She channeled solar energy into my wrists and began to heal them, melding the broken bones at the fracture sites.

"Thank you, Shin!"

"Your welcome." She held my hands delicately and looked into my eyes. "Have you done this before?"

I looked confused. "What?"

"Your wrists, did you break them before?"

"No."

She stared at me and said, "Liar."

I nodded, "Ok, I did, but that was a long time ago."

She empathized with, "I broke an ankle when I was younger, and it hurts like the Hellmouth."

"Yeah, it sure does." I turned my attention over to the passage leading to Campus 9. "What's down there?" I asked.

Anna turned to me, "What do you mean?"

"I feel a disturbance in the Force."

"Really?"

Shin nodded, "Yeah, the past is being undone."

The Titan was confused, "How so?"

The surface rumbled. _The Nexus Mind!_ I thought.

Shin telepathically said, _I know, They're bringing it back to life!_

* * *

Theasyion floated in the middle of her Echo Chamber, feeding the time bridge with memories of Sekrion, her wife, The Nexus Mind. _Today, we may have lost the Vault, but tomorrow, oh wifey mine, we shall conquer the Universe!_


	46. Restore Destroy

RESTORE/DESTROY

Ras, Mala, and Mark touched down in the Tower and ran over to Eris's spot. After torching the S.A.B.E.R. and retrieving the Sleeper Simulant, they cleaned some blight in the Cosmodrome, killed one of Oryx's Echoes, and snatched an Essence of the Feast from its dissolved corpse. "Eris," began Ras, "We found an Essence that will decipher those Calcified Fragments."

Eris Morn took it, applied it to 15 Fragments, and said, "These fragments represent parts of a story about someone's life."

"You mean that they are chapters in a biography or memoir?" said Marcus.

Eris glared at him. "Yes, in a way." She turned to Rasputin, "Tell Max about this, and that we need more fragments."

Mala asked, "Why?"

Eris answered, "Because I can build a weapon from this."

"But why? Won't that lead us to sorrow and suffering?"

"You tinkered with a fusion core."

"That's different! I used resistors, capacitors, and wires to modify it. To fidget with Hive magic is dangerous!"

"How so?" asked Ras.

His daughter replied with, "The whispers in The Bad Juju riddled Max with despair while we were hunting down The Taken King, The Thorn's voice almost drove Shin off the edge with anger during her quest to restore it, and The Necrochasm sent you into a fit of rage! This weapon that Eris is proposing will kill us all if it was given the chance!"

"Or," interrupted Eris, "it could exterminate the Hive completely!"

"Isn't that what Toland said about the Bad Juju?" argued Marcus. Everyone stared at him. "What? I hung out with him once and a while."

"I'm not judging you," said the Sub-mind.

"Thanks, Mala!"

Malahayahti nodded and went straight to Lord Shaxx to talk about her sword. She gave her Spinmetal to the Crucible Handler, then said, "Dad!" Rasputin turned to meet her aquamarine eyes. She asked, "The Hadium Flakes?"

At once, he bolted over to her and gave the flakes to Shaxx. "It'll take some time to reforge the Hadium with some Motes of Light and to infuse a third of it into the Spinmetal, but your sword will be forged."

"And then?" she asked.

He answered with enthusiasm, "Then we can start improving it!"

* * *

Shin, Annalie, and I ran towards Campus 9, where we spotted dozens of Vex crawling around the site. Anna charged towards the Minotaurs and brought them down with her shotgun, Shin sniped the Hobgoblins on the roofs, and I burnt through the Goblins and Harpies with my Mythoclast. When we tried to advance to the next section, we noticed that there was a giant barrier blocking our path. "Now what?" asked Anna, "Are we ever going to get past this barrier?

Ikora answered with, "Yes, just find an Arc Source and short the current."

Shin and I ran all over the place just to find one Arc Source, until Anna brought one out into the open and said, "Found one!" Just as she said that Vex Goblins, Hobgoblins, and Harpies spawned a few meters in front of her and pelted her with plasma bolts from their Slap and Line Rifles. Just as her Grenades cooled down, Anna lobbed her Pulse Grenades, each one being thrown seconds after the previous one.

I checked the magazine in my recently reloaded Mythoclast and found out that it was carrying 28 rounds instead of 35, and that I was down to carrying 135 plasma bolts in total. "Great," I said, "Someone had the audacity to nerf my Mythoclast!" Shin laughed as I wondered, _Nerf? What does that mean?_ With no time to lose Annalie marched up to the first barrier and shorted it out. We ran into the next area, where Shin sniped the Hobgoblins, Anna dealt with the troopers, and I took the next Arc source. As I ran up the stairs to the next barrier, I felt a few plasma bolts graze my arm, leaving a few burn marks on my robes. "AUGH! TAKE THIS!" I turned 180 degrees, threw a Storm Grenade in retaliation, and ran away to the barrier. Once I shorted it, I said, "Pathway's open!" and Shin and Anna rushed to the next Arc Source, and we took down our third barrier, which led us to the Endless Steps.

Once we reached the Steps, Ikora asked, "Did you know that the Vex are organic?"

Shin answered with, "Somewhat, they're encased in metal frames, kinda like Cybermen."

Ikora chuckled and said, "Yes, they are. But unlike Cybermen, they can feel fear, and it has just turned to anger. Be ready for anything."

Just then, A Cyclops spawned across a ravine in the Steps, with a squad of Goblins and Hobgoblins surrounding it. Shin pelted it in the eye with her Black Spindle, while Anna and I checked for Vex. That's when I realized that my Mythoclast was empty. _Dang it!_ Goblins spawned in front of us, with their Slap Rifles singing my Hezen Lord Gauntlets and almost melting the plasteel on her chest armor, and Annalie shot them down with her Thorn. The Cyclops exploded, and all of us glided over the ravine.

Shin took the Arc Source and said, "Watch my back!"

Anna and I said, "No problem!"

Two Cyclops guarded the entrance to the Echo Chamber, and they fired at us. I asked Shin if I could borrow her sniper, and she said, "Yes." She gave me the Black Spindle, and I landed all 18 shots into one Cyclops, then lobbed a Storm Grenade at the other, destroying both of them. I gave the Spindle back to Shin, and the three of us approached the 'front door'. Shin placed the Arc Source into the capacitor, opening the entrance into the Echo Chamber. As we passed through the hallway, Ikora said, "My Hidden have caught this attempt of Vex abusing the timeline. But how have there been? Are we standing in a compilation of abuse?"

I said to myself, "Could be why a thin-skinned sleazebag named Drumpf was elected president."

When we arrived at the Echo Chamber, the large central cylinder (the Time Bridge) was spewing with temporal energy, guarding it were 7 Harpies, and inside was Theasyion, The Restorative Mind. Dispatching the Harpies was easy, but as soon as we transferred the Arc Source, the Time Bridge opened up, and out came Theasyion. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" she shouted, "I'm trying to resurrect the Nexus Mind so that Xylar can have his perfect world, AND YOU THREE HAVE BEEN MEDDLING FOR TOO LONG!" She closed her blast shields and sprayed a constant stream of Arc bolts at us. We ran for cover, killed the Goblins that spawned, and snatched the Arc Source from the capacitor, breaking down the Temporal streams of the Bridge. Theasyion growled as she lowered her guard and moved to the new capacitor. All of us fired at her eye. "AFTER I'M DONE WITH SEKRION, I'LL REWRITE YOUR TIMELINES!" She raised her shields again, and we repeated the process two more times, until she said, "FINE! YOU WANT TO DIE? I CAN GRANT YOUR WISH!" She stared at us like Medusa, then summoned a Hydra to distract us. Anna destroyed the Hydra, while Shin and I handled the Restorative Mind before she went back into the center. I melted three of her blast shield plates and Shin placed three cracks into her Radiolaria Eye. "grrrrrrrrrrrraaaaAAAAAAUUUUUGH! YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO ME AND MY WIFE!" She fired again, we destabilized the Bridge three more times, until we weakened the Restorative Mind down to her last legs, then Shin threw a Fusion grenade into the eye, igniting the Radiolaria. "grrrrrrrrrrrraaaaAAAAAAUUUUUGH!" Theasyion exploded, and the Time-Bridge collapsed.

Ikora remarked, "The Vex are once again denied a powerful Axis mind, let alone two! The Tower has much to thank you for! Very well done!"

* * *

Xylar sat on his throne in Mercury, his 6 additional heads were being polished by 6 different Minotaurs. _First, they escape with Pahanin's Ghost in tow, now they kill Theasyion!?_ "My plans must be accelerated!" he shouted aloud, "Tell the Zealous Mind to hurry up with his duties in the Black Garden, and tell the Instinctive Mind to finish up at the Citadel! I have a Weapon to tend to." He closed his eyes and his chassis became dormant again.


	47. Intertwined

INTERTWINED

After killing Theasyion, Anna decided that we should have a break. So while Shin and I claimed our swords from Shaxx, Mala, Mark, and Ras went to Mars our behalf to investigate the Taken situation. On the surface, everything seemed peaceful, but once they reached the deepest point at the Off-World Transit, they reported seeing a massive hole in the wall, leading into the Black Garden. I was stunned, "What!? The Garden has been breached!?"

"I know," said Mark, "It shocked the Hellmouth out of me, too!"

Mala said, "We'll delve further and see who's controlling these Taken on Mars."

As soon as our swords were tempered from Shaxx's forge, we set off for Venus to climb the Citadel. On the way, Shin was watching the debates on TNN. Apparently, Zavala accused Ikora Rey of some untraceable messages from within the Hidden and Fireteam Omega (us), while Ikora brought up some evidence of a slightly younger Lieutenant Zavala who kept saying stuff like, "I don't wait, just kiss," and "Grab them by the p****." There was also damning evidence revealing Zavala's supposed 'plan' for the City as nothing more than crayon scribbles, but when asked about it, all he had to say was "We're going to build a better wall! It's going to be a great wall because the Fallen are going to pay for it!" Ikora, on the other hand, said, "We need to keep the Affordable Care Act to keep our citizens healthy!" and "I've been talking with Ouros, and we agree that the Minimum Wage needs to be increased!"

Anna shook her head, "They sound similar."

I turned around, "Really?"

"Yeah, she's corrupt and he's dangerous. It's the same thing."

"Oh, sure," I say sarcastically, "They're similar because one wants to raise the minimum wage, whereas the other wants to imprison us inside of a giant wall and reestablish Fascism."

"What?"

"They're similar because one stands up for women while the other objectifies them."

"I didn't mean-"

"They're similar because one is already qualified for diplomacy, whereas the other one knows only war and is willing to send anyone into the Hellmouth if they disagree with his policies!"

Anna grumbled as she took her seat. Shin switched off the screen and said, "Politicians never listen to us."

"Ouros and Bernie Sanders did, but they were denied by their parties."

She turned around, "Who's Bernie Sanders?"

I sat in the passenger's seat. "He's a true progressive, believed in human rights, always had, and he never ever changed his stance."

She switched on the autopilot and placed her hands on either side of my head and closed her eyes, but never advanced. She saw my memories of watching his videos, supporting his campaign. "You were inspired by him and his peace, you wanted his world to come to fruition." She opened her eyes and looked into mine, "You still have it, a world of peace, of opportunities, of hope. You want to share it with the City, but you don't know how." Shin brought my head close to hers, "I can show you how, you just need to let go of your past."

"I don't know how."

She held me tightly, "You're here, you're alive. You're fighting for rights, and I love you for that. But you have to forget Erik Larson, he's dead, you made sure that he was. Don't linger on him."

Anna broke the silence by saying, "Um, guys? We're approaching Venus!"

Shin went back to the controls, "Ok, we'll be touching down outside the Citadel, so be ready."

I sheathed my Void sword, locked and loaded my Mythoclast and Praetorian Foil, Shin did the same thing with her Black Spindle, Hawkmoon, and Last Word (which has mysteriously become silver), Anna loaded her Thorn, Shotgun, and Hezen Vengeance that Shin gave her, and we beamed down to the surface and ran to the Citadel. Vex were preoccupied on the Taken in the area, and vice versa, so we ran right under their noses, and no one batted a corrupted or mechanical eye.

* * *

Mala, Mark, and Ras traversed through the Garden, killing Taken along the way. "You know Ras," said Mark, "I think this would be a nice first date."

"Here's some advice, GO AWAY!" Ras stormed off without another word.

Mark was confused, "What did I say?"

"Something about Charlemagne and his family," replied Mala, "He's just not in the mood."

"When will he?"

"Who knows? But dating him shouldn't be first and foremost on your mind."

"WHY NOT?"

"Because you'll find someone, someday, when they're ready." Mala took out her Arc Sword and offered it to him, "Take it, I've got my Sleeper Simulant."

Mark took the Sword and sheathed it. Together with Mala, they ran up to Ras, who was overviewing the Garden. "The last time that I was here, Max, Shin, and I destroyed the Undying Mind."

"AND NOW I'M GOING TO BRING HIM BACK!" An Echo appeared from behind them.

The three Guardians turned around, "Oh yeah?" Mala charged up her Sleeper, then fired a beam at its head, but it disappeared, and the beam ricocheted off of three walls, before diving into the Garden, lighting a few plants on fire. The Taken that were transported to the scene were led by a Centurion, who was easily decapitated by Mark's new sword.

"YOU IDIOTS!" cried out a booming voice, "YOU LIT THE GARDEN ON FIRE!"

The three Guardians thought the same thing, "The Vex are here!" and they raced towards the shrine.

* * *

Anna, Shin, and I killed a bunch of Taken and Vex as we worked our way to the lift. Once we ascended into the Terminus, which was only three large platforms with only various smaller platforms in between, we navigated the gap to the last large platform, where we heard an Echo of Oryx arguing with a large Harpy. "I insist that you some this madness, Oryx!" said the Harpy.

"How? You invaded my Throne World 400 years ago!"

"We invaded? Your son opened a portal for us to investigate!"

"YOU ALMOST TORE IT APART!"

"YOU OPERATE ON SWORD-LOGIC! ISN'T THE PURPOSE OF IT SUPPOSED TO CUT AWAY ALL EXTERNALITIES?" bickered the Harpy, "Besides, you're one to talk about consent, when it is you who praises rape in your Books of Sorrow!" Vex cheered, we inched closer and closer to the main scene that was in the middle of a square with seven gates.

"SHOULD I REMIND YOUR MASTER OF HIS DUTIES TO THE DARK LORD!?"

"SHOULD I REMIND YOU!?"

We looked at each other and mouthed, "Dark Lord?"

"Need I remind you NOT TO UTTER HIS NAME IN FRONT OF STRANGERS!?"

Anna, Shin, and I stopped. The Vex and Taken surrounding them turned their heads towards us. The Harpy charged at us, I held my sword out, and it ran its eye into the tip, exploding into pieces.

* * *

When Mala, Mark, and Ras reached the Black Garden's Shrine, the platform in the center began to rise like an elevator. The fire began to grow across the Garden as they stepped on the plate and descended into one of the stone rivets in the Garden. They followed the path to a crossroads, where a booming mechanical voice greeted them, "In the underground of their world; one by one, their fates unfurled. A devil walks among you; in your sight, but hidden from view."

"Show your face now and we can end this," said the Hunter.

A ghostly Minotaur formed behind Mark, "WITH YOUR BLOOD!" The Hunter raised his guard against the Minotaur's attacks, then dealt his own to no avail. Mark lashed at the arms and legs, but the Minotaur was too quick, it grabbed the Hunter by the neck and held him up high, "Now as the hour draws nigh; you will most certainly die!" Mala aimed her Sleeper at his head and fired, melting its eye. "WHAT HAST THOU DONE!? THE WORLD IS GONE BEFORE ME; WHY HAST THOU ROBBED MY ABILITY TO SEE!?" it cried as it charged toward the Sub-mind.

Mark slashed at the chest, cutting the Minotaur in half and leaking its Radiolaria. "When you're a guy who is all talk, you'll eventually forget how to walk." He picked up a ring from its downfall. _More and more curious by the day._

The Garden began to crumble around them. "LET'S GO!" shouted the Warmind, and they ran back the way they came.

* * *

The Echo fired Bolts of Darkness at us, and we scattered. I went for the ads with my sword, while Anna and Shin tackled the Echo. Suddenly, the Citadel began to rumble, iron beams fell off of their hinges, platforms began to disassemble. Shin grabbed her Solar sword and swung it at the Echo's head, killing it. Its screams amplified the vibrations of the Terminus, and almost fractured our ears. The wind was rushing past us as the Citadel crumbled. Anna grabbed the Essense of the Feast that the Echo dropped and said, "That's two! Now, how do we get off this damn thing!"

"I sent a ping to our ship!" I shouted, "It should be here any minute!" The floors began to unhinge, the ship arrived just in time, "Come on!" We rushed to the ship, teleported in, and rushed home before we were caught in its destruction.

* * *

Xylar and the last Echo of Oryx stood before the Dark Lord. "THE BLACK GARDEN AND THE CITADEL HAVE BEEN RAVAGED!?"

Xylar stuttered, "M-m-mast-t-t-ter, w-w-we're close to resurrecting Mercury! We can-"

"SHUT YOUR RUSTED MOUTH SHUT!" Then he turned to the Echo, "AND YOU! YOU WERE ON BOTH OF THOSE SIGHTS! HOW COULD YOU LET THEM PASS THROUGH YOUR FINGERS!?"

"Th-th-they had my sword, master. Refined, but untrained! I can still-"

"SAVE IT!" He turned to Xylar, "Have you made the necessary preparations?"

"We have! We just need to install the final components."

"Good!" said a relieved Dark Lord, "Then we can crush the City, one and for all!" As soon as Xylar departed, he turned to Oryx and said, "Can you amplify yours?"

"It just requires the essence of the Darkblade, Alak-hul."

"Then do so, and do not fail me!"

"I won't."


	48. The Swords Ascend

THE SWORDS ASCEND

After we got back to the Tower, we delivered Nightingale and the ring to Lakshmi-2, our second Feast Essence to Eris, and Annalie decided to kick back with Ras and Mala. I learned that Mala could now summon an Arc Blade and Anna is armed with her own Hammer of Sol. Meanwhile, Shaxx sent Mark, Shin, and I on a bounty for Ecthar's Taken head, which we promptly delivered to the Crucible Handler, who said that the Cassoid foundry (maker of Ras's Invective) has delivered the necessary Hadium from a Dead Orbit fleet to Shaxx, and now, we just need to kill Alak-Hul and his three wardens, Thracu, Helostor, and Adleg.

The rest of the team decided to go on their own mission into the crashed Cabal Ship and kill the last two Cabal Commanders in our system. After the six of us touched down in the Mausoleum, Ras, Anna, and Mala ran into the Cabal ship, destroyed a tank, and killed Valus Tlu'urn and Valus Mua'aul. Then they cracked open a few chests throughout the Dreadnaught to collect a few more Calcified Fragments, faced off against a few champions in the Court of Oryx and gained 7 more Fragments. After that, they were told to retake Phobos from the last Echo of Oryx in the name of the City, and they found, you guessed it, the last Essense of the Feast.

Meanwhile, Mark, Shin, and I ran to the other side of the Mausoleum, through a hallway, and into a dungeon. Eris spoke through the comms, "Alak-Hul once rose against Oryx, but failed to assassinate him properly. Now, he waits in the darkest cells of the Dreadnaught, waiting for the right time to rise into god-hood. Don't give him the chance!"

"We won't!" replied Shin, then we passed through most of the Hive and Taken occupying the dungeon and ran through the hallways that led us to the hourglass room known as the Asylum. Ahead of us, the door was sealed shut by two sets of Hive Runes. Shin went to the platform on the left to deactivate one set, Mark moved towards the right to deactivate the other, and I handled the ads in the middle with my Storm grenade and Mythoclast, while grabbing two more Calcified Fragments. On each platform were two Wizards; Mark sniped his two, while Shin impaled hers with her sword. They went to the platforms, scanned the Hive consoles, and killed the Shriekers. The Runes went down and more enemies came out. The Hunter unsheathed his Arc Blade and sliced his way through the remaining Acolytes, Knights, and Wizards. The doors opened, and we walked inside.

The doors opened, and we walked inside. "So," said the Hunter to Shin, "What do you say that you and I go for a-"

Shin defiantly said, "No!"

"Aw, come on!"

"The answer is no! Besides, I'm going on a date with Anna."

Mark was shocked, "WHAT!?"

I asked, "What?"

"Yeah," replied the Awoken Warlock, "She asked me out."

I nodded, "Ok."

Mark turned to me, "WHAT!? You're just going to let her go!?"

She quickly said, "No, I'm Polyamorous! He knows about this!"

"Do you, Max?"

I nodded again, "Yeah."

"So," he turned back to Shin, "Why not me!?"

The Taken began to appear in the next room. "I'll explain later," she said as she activated Radiance, "But right now, we need to kill these Taken!" and pelted the Acolytes and Knights with Grenades and bullets. Mark fired at the Phalanxes from his Omolon Scout Rifle, and I massacred all of the Psions with my Stormtrance. More Acolytes spawned, this time with Wizards. Mark slashed at the Wizards with his Arc sword, then went for the Acolytes. Another Taken Knight spawned, but Shin set up a formal introduction between her sword and its head. Once the door opened, we killed the Ogre that guarded it and ran across a bridge, straight ahead. I flew to one of the side platforms and found another Fragment. I ran back down and entered the next room.

The next room was full of Shriekers, some of which we destroyed, others were left alone. I threw another grenade at a mass of Taken Acolytes, and ran for the door on the opposite end, killing the Phalanxes and Wizard with my sword. Shin and Mark followed suit. Out of curiosity, I asked, "Eris, why did the Darkblade rise against Oryx?"

"A wizard named Verok was his mate," she answered, "He slew a legion of Thrall and Acolytes in her name, marched into Oryx's Throne with his own army, but was ultimately left for dead by his so-called 'chosen one'."

"How...romantic," I said flatly. We crossed another bridge to reach the Darkblade's cell, then fell down into the pit of the cell, the Darkblade's den.

For a while, there was silence. Then we felt the floor gently quake beneath our feet, progressively getting more and more abrupt. A muscular figure with heavy bone armor emerged from the darkest room that we faced. In his right hand was a blunt and brutal Ax. his helmet was polygonal with 4 small streaks in the back, and his armor carried several rings with strands of cloth. "Liiiiiiight," his voice sounded like an unhealthy hybrid between a growl and a hiss, "I mussst have it!" Mark began sniping at the Darkblade's head, but the bullets ricocheted into every direction. Alak-Hul kept marching towards us, "Toniiiiiiight, I ssshhhall feasssst!"

We scattered just as he slammed his Ax down, and then the first Warden arrived, a Hive Knight wielding a Cleaver and an Arc Shield. The Darkblade vanished. I spoke through the comms, "Don't kill your Wardens yet! Weaken the Darkblade, then move in for the kills!"

"How do we weaken him when his armor is bullet-proof!?" shouted Mark.

"Look for a weakness!"

Thrall crawled out of the rooms, Alak-Hul appeared from behind Shin. She barrel rolled out of the Darkblade's way and noticed something odd about the armor. "Max! His armor doesn't cover his belt!"

"Alright! We'll attack there!"

The second Hive Warden appeared, this time with a Boomer and a Void Shield. _There's my target._

Mark charged toward the Darkblade, sliding just in time to avoid the Ax, and he slashed in between the legs. Alak-Hul winced, he howled, and the third Warden arrived, this time as a Taken Knight with a Solar Shield. The Hunter also found a pin behind the Darkblade's helmet and sniped it, popping it off of the Darkblade's head. "AUGH! NOW YOU'VE MADE ME ANGRY!" He charged, I dodged and slashed at some of the robes holding his armor together, and it fell apart like a house of cards. The Darkblade swiped, "GET BACK HERE!"

"Now, guys!" We rushed to our Wardens, stabbed them, and began hacking at the Darkblade. All three of us guarded ourselves against the Darkblade's Ax, and using our swords, we forced it out of his hands. Mark marked a giant "X" across Alak-Hul's chest, then stabbed him in the stomach. Alak fell to his knees, "YOU CANNOT STOP HIM!"

I plunged my sword into his neck, "Oh I think we can and will!"

"Or haven't you heard?" said Shin, "We're the Guardians who killed Atheon and Crota!" She beheaded the Alak-Hul as he silently screamed into oblivion.

Our swords began to glow with elemental energy, and Mark decided to teleport to the ship. Shin and I stayed for a while. "Max?" she asked.

"Yes?" I replied.

Shin paused, calculating her words, "I told Anna that I would be taking you on the date as well. So..."

"Wait, what!?"

"She's interested in you! She's not like other Titans, she prefers watching Doctor Who, LOTR, and Marvel with the other Warlocks, and she LOVES books!"

"But I'm not Polyamorous!"

"Come on! I need this!"

I hesitated, pondered about this for a while. "Alright, we'll go on a 'date' with her."

"Fantastic!" said Shin excitedly.

* * *

Ras, Mala, and Anna went back to the bridge of the Cabal Ship after their mission to Phobos. They received word from a Dead Orbit fleet that the Cabal are sending an outbound signal to who-knows-where. Their mission is to find the recipient of this signal. When they reached the bridge, however, there was a Taken Centurion with a long board sticking up in the back that was guarding the console. Mala fired her Sleeper at its head and instantly vaporized it. She ran to the console and pulled out her new Ghost, Nightingale, to rummage through the files. "The signal did come from here, reports of all the deaths within the ranks: soldiers and commanders alike."

"Where is it going?" asked Anna.

"To...that can't be right!"

"What is it?" asked Mala.

"It's going to the heads of the Cabal Empire, Umprus Valu'uzar and Umpra Rehla."

Ras shivered at first and said, "I've got a bad feeling about this."

* * *

Malok stepped up to the Shrine of Oryx and bowed. "My Lord," it said with a distorted voice, "I have Taken your Shrine and am preparing it for the Dreadnaught."

The Image of Oryx looked at Malok and said, "Good, stay there until further instructions, and don't fret about the Guardians, attract them to your den if you must."

"Thy will be done."


	49. The Blighted Chalice

THE BLIGHTED CHALICE

All 6 of us came back to the Tower and ran to Eris, giving her the rest of the Calcified Fragments (bring our total up to 42) and the last Essense of the Feast. "Good job!" she ecstatically said, "Now we need the last 8 Fragments and some materials: 50 Hadium Flakes, 25 Wormspore, and 50 Weapon Parts."

Ras pulled out the necessary materials, "Will these help?"

"YES!" Eris snatched them from his hands and hid them away. "Now," her voice reverted to normal, "Do you remember the Shrine of Oryx?"

Ras replied, "Yes! Yes, I do!"

"I need three of you to go down there and kill a new Taken beast known as Malok. It is feeding the Dreadnaught with the Shrine's power, enough power to recharge its massive weapon again, this time for an attack on this City!"

I piped, "Shin, Ras, and I will go!"

"Good. Meanwhile, an Orge that has been bathing in Taken power is absorbing the Shrine's energy and preparing to offer itself to the weapon in order to charge it. The other three must go and kill this Ogre before it reaches the core."

"Ok," said Mala, "We'll be on our way-"

"-AFTER you get your swords tempered!" Lord Shaxx surprised us from behind. "I can see that your blades are brewing with stolen power from the Hive!" he laughed, "Now, we'll see the true extent of these swords and their strength!" He gestured to the Hunter, "Marcus, your sword is first." Mark gave his sword to Shaxx, who placed it into a forge for a few minutes, then took his own Hammer of Sol to make a new shape out of the sword, one that was similar to the original, but had numerous holes in the shapes of parallelograms. Shaxx placed it back into the forge for another few minutes, took it out for quenching, and straightened it in a vice. "There you are! A new sword for a Champion of the Light!"

Mark stared into its shiny, electrified blade and saw the lightning of the Traveler within it. He spoke to the sword, "Eirfaeril, the Bolt-Caster!"

Shin said, "I'm next!" and offered her sword to Shaxx, who repeated the same procedure, but this time with notches on the edges, making the sword look more rigid than before.

He tempered the blade, quenched, and straightened it, then handed it back to Shin, "A strong blade for a very strong Guardian!"

Shin grinned, then looked into her sword that was caked in flames. She saw the fires of fate growing continuously, consuming the enemies that dare oppose the City. "You are Xolcryst," she said to her sword, "The Raze-Lighter!"

I offered my sword to Shaxx, and he reforged the whole thing altogether, going back and forth between his anvil and the forge. He etched curvy patterns into the blade, tempered, quenched, and straightened it, but this time, he dunked the entire blade into a vat of ferric chloride (since when does he have all of this stuff around his desk?), then wiped off the excess and said, "This is the most powerful sword you could ask for, use it carefully."

I looked into my own sword, now filled with the magic of the Void. I saw numerous 'gods' being devoured by this mighty blade. I spoke to my sword, "I dub thee Yuulstrang, Drinker of the Dark!"

Ras rushed us away from Shaxx. "Alright, enough sword-naming, we need to get moving!" We went to our ships and drove to our missions. Shin spoke to me from the driver's seat, "About the date, we're meeting up at Chez Tower, and it's very formal."

I stuttered, "Um, I'm not one for fancy restaurants."

"But Anna said that it's her favorite place!"

"Couldn't she have picked somewhere else?"

"Even if she did, we never had a formal date!"

I sighed, "Ok, we'll go to Chez Tower."

Ras spoke from the distance, "You guys are so lucky!"

I turned around, confused with his choice of words. "What do you mean?"

"I never had a date with Charlemagne, and Mark was always pestering me."

"What if you don't need one?"

"But I do!"

"You're a Titan! You can take on entire armies, hold off attacks. Heck, you've even slain two gods! No other Titan could that!"

Ras simply said, "Cass could."

I remembered Cass, her bravery and her honor, complimented by her smile and her kindness. In my mind, only Shin could ever surpass Cass. "Yeah, she could."

Shin remembered too, "She was a fan-tas-tic Titan, a noble warrior of the people, and a good friend. We might not have made it this far."

"She was the only one who could read me like a book," said the Warmind.

The console alerted us, and we touched down in the Hellmouth's Summoning Pits. Taken Psions greeted us with bullets, and we responded likewise. Moving to the door, three locks prevented us from moving forward. "Sealed door and Hive Runes. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" I said to Shin.

She grinned, "Yep, Tomb Husks!" She locked and loaded as a horde of Thrall came out of nowhere, commanded by a Wizard. I melted all of them with my Mythoclast, grabbed a Husk, then cemented it to a lock. More Thrall came, this time they were led by a Knight. Ras threw a Thermite Grenade in front of the horde, pulsing its flames toward the crowd. Once the Knight was killed, another Husk appeared, and Ras brought to the second lock. A wave of Taken Psions transported themselves into the pits, Shin fired from her dual hand cannons, threw a grenade into the crowd, and sniped the Taken Captain that ordered them around. She snatched the last Husk, cemented it to the last lock, and slashed at all three of them with Xolcryst's Uppercut. She said, "This is going to be fun!"

A bunch of Cursed Thrall began walking towards us from the door, Shin fired from her Hawkmoon, and the Thrall caught her by surprise. She self-rezzed and said, "Come on, guys!" as she literally blazed a path for us, all the way to the Shrine of Oryx.

Along the way, Eris Morn said, "Malok crawled through the walls of our world and the Ascendant to reach here, only Toland noted of such passageways, such escape routes."

"And I'm guessing that you used said routes to escape from Crota?" I asked.

"Stay focused! There's too much at stake!"

We arrived at the Shrine, which was guarded by Taken Acolytes. After they were murdered, Malok teleported onto the scene. "Ah, the famous Guardians!" it said with a mysterious voice, "Come for the Shrine?"

"Actually, we have!" shouted Shin.

"WELL TOO BAD! YOU'LL DIE BEFORE YOU GET THE CHANCE!" then it called in the distance, "TAKEN! ATTACK!" More Taken Psions came to the scene. We ran up to the highest point in the circle surrounding the Shrine, which was a small tunnel. Malok fired its Arc Boomer at us as we ducked for cover. As I killed the ads on the left side and as Ras handled the right, Shin began sniping at Malok's head. She continued to pelt until a lucky shot from a Psion caused her to miss a headshot, and instead, she fired at Malok's Boomer, fragmenting it. "AUGH! FACE MY FIRE!"

Malok spat a pool of fire at Shin. She ran out of the way and into the tunnel. We cleaned the Psions and Vandals that recently appeared. I tried getting a clean shot on the Taken beast, but it just spat another round of fire at me, and I ran back inside. "Ok," I panted, "We need a new plan!"

Shin replied with, "Ras can distract Malok, while I snipe its ugly head, and Max can watch for ads!"

Ras said, "Say no more," and began blowing raspberries at Malok. I fell into Stormtrance to clean up the blight and enemies, and Shin fired at will. All of us had to avoid pools of fire at given points in time.

Malok's head began to bloat, and with one final snipe, its head exploded, and it covered its face. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!?" it shouted. This time, Malok didn't have a mysterious voice, but rather a familiar one. A woman's voice.

I turned to look at "Malok's" face. Her hair was long and sporadic, she turned around and lowered her hands with a devilish grin. All of us were shocked, "JESS!?"

Jess growled, "MY NAME IS MALOK, THE DREDGEN VALE!" She launched 4 axion darts at us every 5 seconds. We tried to run away from them, but to no avail. We crouched down, closed our eyes, and prepared for our fate.

Then we heard a light 'CLANG!' from the distance and an enlightened Hammer of Sol flying at the darts, detonating them. A glowing figure leaped into the ring, helmetless, lobbing Hammers at Jess. Shin and I recognized her immediately, "Cass!"

Jess turned to Cass, "HOW COULD YOU BETRAY ME!? HOW DARE YOU SIDE AGAINST YOUR GIRLFRIEND!?"

Cass locked eyes with Jess, "You nearly strangled one of our teammates! You thought of him as weak! You never cared for your team, only yourself!"

"FOR YOU! I LOVED YOU!"

"Then consider this a break-up!" Cass charged at the muscular Jess, slamming her hammer down on Jess's huge feet. Jess swiped and slammed her fists at Cass, but to no avail. The enlightened Titan began flying around Jess, then called out, "Max! Now!"

I charged at Jess with Yuulstrang and began twisting myself counter-clockwise, creating a sharp Void Vortex with the sword, slicing through Jess's giant legs up to the torso.

"AAAUUGH!" Jess fell to the ground, legless. She snatched Cass and me in her huge hands. "MAX! YOU TOOK MY GIRLFRIEND AWAY FROM ME! YOU KILLED HER! NOW, I'LL AVENGE HER DEATH, WEAKLING!"

I felt her hand squeezing the air out of my lungs, her thumb pressed against my face, pressing my head into the side of her fingers. I cried out a muffled, "SHIN!"

Shin charged with Xolcryst towards Jess's back. Jess turned her Taken head and cried out in shock, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Shin yelled, "HEI-YA!" as she sliced up Jess's Taken spine, making a clean division of her sister's left and right sides. Her remnants continued to scream as she burned up.

Cass and I freed ourselves from Jess's dead fingers. "Cass?"

"Yes, it's me!"

"But, we thought that you were..."

"Dead?" she nodded, "Yeah, I am."

"So, how did you come back?"

She looked at us and said, "You, all of you recalled my memories, our memories. You asked me to walk beyond the grave! And," she gestured to Jess's ashes, "We had some unfinished business." Cass walked towards me, "I want you to do me a favor."

I shrugged, "Ok."

"Let go of your past."

"Wait, what?"

"I know what happened 745 years ago, I've been there too. What broke my heart was Drumpf going to war against my country, killing innocent civilians left and right, in the streets," then she rolled up her sleeves, revealing a 9-digit number, "Or in the death camps."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

Cass rolled her sleeve back, "But I've let go of my past. I've learned to fight where no one can or will. Yes, I hate Nazis too, but they are all dead. Our watch is over, Max. Just let it go."

I was frantic, "But what if they come back? What if Zavala wins? What if Erik comes back? What if Oryx succeeds? What if..."

As I rambled on, Cass gestured toward Shin, "Do it." Shin walked right up to me, grabbed my head, popped off our helmets, closed her eyes, and kissed me right on the lips. I felt like I was suffocating, losing valuable and vital air, but Ras placed a Ward of Dawn around us and began filling it with oxygen from his Exo frame. Even then, Shin's arms felt like they were confining me. With open eyes, I could see Cass mouthing to me, "Let go!" as she disappeared.

l willed myself to let go of my past, my eyes rolled into the closing eyelids, and I wrapped my own arms around Shin. It was the first time that I ever kissed a girl (and I'm not describing my romantic experiences any further. You're welcome.)

Then we heard a loud crack as a rift in space-time opened on top of the Shrine. Shin and I broke away from each other as our attention turned towards a giant Hive hand picking up the Blighted Shrine and pulling it back through the rift. "Oryx! He's got the Shrine!" I exclaimed, putting my helmet back on my head.

"AND BEHOLD, I AM POWERFUL FOREVER MORE!" The Taken King's voice echoed throughout the cosmos, "WITH MY SHRINE AND MERCURY'S WEAPON CORE, I NOW HAVE THE POWER TO WIPE OUT YOUR PRECIOUS SOLAR SYSTEM, AND THEN SOME! ALL WILL BOW BEFORE ME! ALL WILL ACCEPT ME AS LORD AND SAVIOR! I! AM! YOUR! GOD!"


	50. Inevitable Armageddon

INEVITABLE ARMAGEDDON

The Warpriest paced through the halls of the Dreadnaught 585 times. He paced to check on the Weapon core and the Shrine, he paced to weigh the benefits against the costs. He dedicated himself to finding a cure to the hunger of the worms within the Hive, and the Taken was a cure for this disease. He asked himself, _Is all of this really necessary? Becoming the only God in the universe just to satisfy his hunger? Or maybe the worm is the ticket to ascension, to apotheosis?_

* * *

We raced back to the Tower as quickly as we could. Mala and her team had already returned to the Tower and voted for their next Speaker when we got there. "Where were you?" said Mala, "You need to fill out your ballots and Oryx has threatened to kill us all!"

I told them as I went to the Postmaster, "I know, we were on the Moon when he stole the Blighted Shrine!"

"And we were on Mercury, killing Xylar, while Oryx stole the Weapon core!"

"AND," added Mark, "That Ogre that was seething with Taken Power that was apparently connected to the Shrine? Turns out it was a dud!"

I filled out my ballot, carefully checking off 'Ikora/Vance' instead of 'Zavala/Hideo'. There were also two more check boxes, one for Cayde as part of Dead Orbit (shockingly) and Eris Morn as her own party: Crota's Bane. "Wait, what?" I asked as I handed in my ballot and turned around to meet them. Shin and Ras filled out their ballots and joined us. "You were on Mercury?"

"Yeah, and we saw a giant hand come out of a rift, grab the core, and disappear!" said Anna, "And he announced that he's going to destroy the universe to become its God!"

Eris ran up to us, "Thank goodness you're here! They need you in the Hall of Guardians!"

We rushed into a Vanguard meeting/debate between Zavala shouting for more walls and Ikora demanding action. I walked in and shouted, "OI!" No response.

Shin shouted, "ALL OF YOU, SHUT UP!"

"YOU FIRST!"

"NOT THIS TIME!"

They fell silent and turned their heads toward us. "What did you say?" asked Zavala accusingly.

"I said, 'Shut your mouth and zip up your flapping lips', Drumpf!" No one made a sound. "Good," I said calmly, "Now, we have a situation on our hands: Oryx has just announced that he's going to destroy the universe to become its God. Any plans?"

Zavala started, "A massive army to tear apart the Dreadnaught by force, and a wall to keep the Fallen out!"

"The Eliksni are irrelevant, Drumpf!"

"A mental invasion to break Oryx's focus!" offered Ikora.

"That would take too long."

"Another scouting mission?" inquired the Hunter Vanguard.

"A Raid!" suggested Shin. Everyone turned to look at her. "6 Guardians will go in and destabilize the Dreadnaught long enough for the Vanguard fleet to take out the weapon for good!" I grinned,

I grinned, _Well done, Shin!_

 _Thank you!_ she said telepathically.

"And what about Oryx?" asked Cayde-6.

"Simple," I concluded, "We'll kill him!"

"B-b-b-but..." stammered a sniffling Zavala.

I shut him down with, "No buts, Drumpf." Zavala angrily walked out of the room.

An Exo Hunter walked into our meeting, his yellow cloak with House of Kings insignias was tattered, with only blue stitches to keep it one piece, but his Lucky Raspberry was still intact. "Cayde!" he said, "We've got reports from Saturn, the Dreadnaught is about to fire!"

Cayde nodded grimly as the room filled with gloom, "Good work, Shiro!"

Shiro snapped his fingers and clicked at Mark, trying to say "Hey, looking good!" and then he left.

Eris stepped in and said, "It will be fully charged in 2 hours!"

"Alright, guys!" I said, "We have our mission: Shin, Ras, Mala, Mark, Anna, and I will work our way through the heart of the Dreadnaught, killing off Exalted Hive soldiers as we go, until we kill Oryx. Simultaneously, Cayde will lead the Vanguard fleet into action once we drop the shields, fly into the core, destroy everything in sight with Void bombs. LET'S MOVE OUT!"

Everyone ran out of the room and to their ships. The comms announced, "ALL PILOTS: ATTEND TO YOUR STATIONS! THIS IS A CODE OMEGA RESPONSE!" over and over again. Eris ran up to us, "Before you go, I wanted to give you something," She held out a rugged Scout Rifle frame and offered it, "Use this to collect the pieces of the Old Hunger: The Blade of Famine, The Shroud of Ir Anuk, and The Ravenous Heart. These are the keys to your success."

"Thank you, Eris!" I said, "Let's hope that the City doesn't fall!" Before leaving, I gave my Vex Mythoclast to Lakshmi-2, which created a small time rift for one second when paired up with the other items from our previous adventures to Twilight Gap and the Black Garden. Such a rift dropped a weapon into my hands, in it was a message, "Hello, Max! Sorry about this late notice, but Time is tainted. Events from the past have corrupted the future, and you are the center of it all. Just remember to let go. -Anon"

I ran to the ship and jumped in. Everyone else was there. "Alright!" I said, "Let's go kill a King!"


	51. Dissecting the Dreadnaught

DISSECTING THE DREADNAUGHT

 **1 hour and 45 mins. remaining**

We locked and loaded our weapons, all of us switching to snipers for damage. Anna swapped her Thorn for a weapon of her own design called the Zhalo Supercell. Malahayahti was replacing Nightingale's old male voice modulator with a female one, and every time that Mala fidgeted with Night, the Ghost blushed and the Sub-mind was so close to puking if robots could puke. Shin sat in the pilot's seat, driving us at jump-speed, while I sat next to her, and everyone else was in the back. She asked, "Max, do you have any idea on what we're up against?"

I shook my head, "No. All I know is that we're on a timer, a relatively short one."

"What do we do now?"

"Fight our way through Oryx's Throne World, and pray to the Traveler that we're not too late."

"Yeah, and after that?"

"Hope that the City doesn't fall to Fascism."

She sighed, "Don't worry about the City, you'll be fine!" She set the Auto-pilot to detect when we were reaching the Dreadnaught, then she turned towards me, "How many times do I need to say this? The majority sides with Ikora, Fascism has been buried for over 700 years, and above all, you're scaring me." She held me in an embrace, "Let go of this."

"It's how I remained alive," I whispered.

"I know, but it's time to move on."

Mala shouted from the back, "Will you two PLEASE GET A ROOM!?" Everyone in the back laughed, and Shin and I couldn't help but chuckle along.

Shin broke away, "If it ever comes back, we'll be there to help you."

"Yeah, Max! We've got your back!" said Anna.

"Besides," said Mala as she finalized her Sleeper, "We don't to see you killed, or worse."

I grinned, "Thanks, guys!" The console beeped, the ship fell out of Jump-space, and into the Hull Breach. Shin pulled back on the E-brake and cried out in anguish. I grabbed the handle, and so did Anna. The E-brake broke, and we buckled ourselves in, bracing for an impact into one of the Breach's walls. The nose of the ship crunched, the ship fell to ground level, we hopped out and ran away just in time for the engines to explode. Nothing too dramatic, but it smelt like Hell, as if we weren't inside it already. I justified, "And that is why I like Electric Vehicles." Shin laughed, but everyone else had confused looks on their faces.

Cayde spoke through the comms, "When are you going to drop those shields?"

"A couple minutes!" All of us went to the Hall of Souls, jumping through the Court of Oryx to get to the hallway with the Statues. In the room opposite the Court and the hallway, there were two tomb husks, each on a small pillar to either side. "I think I know what to do!" I exclaimed, "These statues open up that gate to the Throne, right?"

Everyone looked at each other, displaying confusion, "Yeah?"

"So, we just need to overload all 6 statues with 2 husks in each one. That will short out all of the Dreadnaught's defenses!"

"Get going!" shouted Cayde.

Ras and Mark took the Husks. A giant white barrier blocked our way and the Image of Oryx blazed to life. "YOU AGAIN!? CAN'T YOU EVER GIVE UP!?"

"Considering that you're going to wipe out the entire Universe in one swift stroke, we'll never give up!" I shouted.

"ENOUGH!" Taken Centurions and Acolytes spawned onto the scene, "YOU CANNOT STOP ME!" It disappeared, we shot down the barrier and the Taken, and Ras and Mark dumped their husks into the first statue.

"Alright, Ras and Mala will go to the right, Mark and Anna will stay to the left, and Shin and I will stay in the center."

Mala and Anna jumped over gaps to grab their next Tomb Husks, the barriers were raised, Taken Phalanxes spawned on either side, Centurions spawned in the middle, and Thrall appeared in the hallways leading to their sides. Ras and Mark fired at the Phalanxes and the side barriers, Shin and I shut down the middle barriers and the Centurions, and Mala and Anna ran towards the second statue and dumped their Tomb Husks, overloading it with dark energy. I spoke to Shin as everyone went back to their spots. "Shin?"

"Yes?"

"I was thinking about Acadia and Mount Cadillac, and maybe we can go there for our date instead of Chez Tower."

"But, Anna suggested a restaurant! How can you turn that down!?"

"Because I'll be making breakfast."

Anna chimed in, "I like that!" Mark and Ras picked up their Tomb Husks.

We repeated the process for all six statues. Surprisingly, if we didn't kill any of the Thrall from the previous round, no one spawned near the statues. Once the sixth statue was overloaded with dark energy, the gate opened with a rumble throughout the Dreadnaught, lowering the outer defenses. "All clear, Cayde!" shouted Shin, "You are free to attack!"

 _"Copy that, Rogue Hunter. We're going in!"_ said the Hunter Vanguard.

We killed the Hive coming out of the portal, and we went through the large Rupture.

* * *

 _"All clear, Cayde! You are free to attack!"_ Shin's voice could be heard through the ship's comms. He called back, "Copy that, Rogue Hunter. We're going in!" then he switched the comms link to the fleet, "This is Blade leader to all teams, we're a go for Operation: God-Slayer." Everyone dropped out of jump-speed and into the battle zone near the Dreadnaught. Cayde piloted the ship towards the Dreadnaught, looking for a weakness in the whole thing. "Alright, Arc team: Look for a weakness in the weapon, hit it and/or the weapon multiple times if needed."

 _"Copy that, Blade leader."_

"Void team, watch out for bogies and shoot them on sight."

 _"Say no more."_

"Solar team, you're with me. Let's tear apart this Dreadnaught!"

 _"You heard him! Let's go!"_

Cayde's radar pinged multiple Hive fighters and Tombships. "Void, handle the outside! Solar, Blade 2, and I are going in!"

Shiro sat in the cockpit of Blade 2, finger on the trigger, waiting for a target.


	52. Priestbanes

PRIESTBANES

 **1 Hour and 30 minutes remaining**

We came out of the Rupture and into a small room with a chest in the middle. This one had a few Moldering Shards, nothing more or less. When we moved into the large room with the swaying lanterns, the Dreadnaught began to rumble. _It's already begun!_ We quickly hopped across the lanterns, timing our jumps to land on the next one, and eventually the platform on the other side, leading to the Portico. As we ran around a rectangular pillar to advance, we saw the effects of the space battle outside, Guardian jumpships and Hive fighters locked in epic dogfights, one or two of which raged through the huge gap between the first part of the large room to the second.

Anna realized, "That Tomb Ship, let's hope it can carry us across!" We jumped onto it, and within seconds, we were traveling through the air. A broken Hive fighter dove for our Tomb Ship, we dove for another one before the first one could be destroyed. After a while, another fighter dove for the second, and we went for the third. We repeated this process on 10 of the 11 ships in the gap. We descended from ships 1 to 6, avoided ship 7, and ascended from 8 to 11, each ship being attacked by a diving fighter or Guardian jumpship.

Once we reached the final gap, we noticed that there was a barrier in the middle of the gap that can only be deactivated when two Hive plates are pressed. Anna and Mark sat on the plates and lowered the barrier; the rest of us piled onto another Tomb Ship in the dock, and we started to take off. A Guardian jumpship shot the Tomb ship, it collided into a wall that supported the barrier, all of us jumped off, and most of us landed safely on a ledge. "Ok, Shin, Mala, me,...WHERE'S MARK!?"

"HEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLP MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"

I looked down to find Mark struggling to lift himself up, "HANG ON, MARK! WE'RE COMING!"

He stabbed his knife into the ledge and tried to raise his footing. As soon as he placed pressure on the knife, it fell into the abyss. Mark tightened his grip, "HEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLP!"

I ran to his side, "Come on! Reach for my hand!" I crouched and offered my right hand, Shin came down to support me, and we pulled Mark onto the ledge. "Where would you be without me?"

"In my grave, resting peacefully."

"That's boring!"

"Maybe, but you could've chosen anyone else, why me?"

I thought for a while about it, "You're my brother. Why else?"

Mark shrugged and walked away, up to an alcove with a door. We walked through, unlocked the chest for more Moldering Shards, then sat down on the other two plates. Ras and Anna jumped on the next tomb ship and deliberately jumped off to follow our path. Once all of us made it through, I picked up another Calcified Fragment that sat beside a central pillar in the room, placed it into the Scout Rifle frame, then all of us stepped into a lift, which took us up to another hallway, leading to the Basilica.

The Basilica consisted of two parts: the first is a horizontal room with a red room on the right, a blue room on the left, and a normally lighted room in the middle. An Annihilator Totem stood in the middle of each of the side rooms, surrounded by an atmosphere that is poisonous to anyone other than the Hive. A giant plate sits in the exact middle, and a giant magical door that reaches up to the ceiling blocks the way to the second part, and each side of the door held 20 uncharged runes. In front of the door were 8 Acolytes, only two of which had red armor. To either side of the Acolytes were two raised platforms. In each of the small arches leading to the side rooms was a floating orb.

After taking a Calcified Fragment that sat off to a side, I took a quick and quiet walk around, noticed the orbs, totems, and plate. _I don't know what to do!_

Osiris appeared in front of me, clearer than before. "The orbs are called Brands, they grant immunity to counter the poison in the rooms, and they're converted into Rune Charges after 30 seconds, passing to the next person, if any."

"And the Charges go into this plate?" I inferred. Osiris nodded, then disappeared.

Everyone else stared at me with confused looks, "Who the Hellmouth were you talking to?"

I remember that no one else can see Osiris or even communicate with him. Shaking all of it away, I said, "Ok, we need two people on each side, someone to take the left brand, and someone to take the right. Find a buddy, and-" Before I could finish, Shin gravitated towards me, Ras tried to go to his daughter, but she was already paired with Anna, so he reluctantly paired himself with Mark. "Ohohohoh! We were a mighty fine couple, you and me!" said the Hunter.

"Say that again," replied the Warmind threateningly, "And I'll rip your skull right out of your head, and beat you to death with it!"

"That doesn't seem physically possible," then the Hunter added, "But if you could, please slap my butt first?"

"I'LL SLAP YOU INTO A COMA IF YOU DON'T MOVE!" shouted the Warmind.

That got the Hive's attention. A booming shrill shouted, "AH! GUESTS! WE'RE SO FORTUNATE TO HAVE YOU IN THE DEEPEST RECESSES OF THESE HOLY GROUNDS! ACOLYTES, COLLECT THEIR BLOOD!"

The Acolytes rose from their prayer, the Annihilator Totems awakened, and I said, "Let's go!" Shin and Mark took their brands, with Ras and I following behind them. Mala and Anna shot at the Acolytes, accidently killing one of the red ones before the others. One of them shouted, "I THINK THAT WE'RE IN TROUBLE!"

The brands swapped and Shin said, "COMING!"

I felt a Hive Boomer shot explode in front of me, "Ow!"

Mala ran down to my side and sniped the Knight on a ledge. "Thought you could use some help."

"Thanks, Mala!" The brands swapped, Ras and I raced to the middle, swapping places with Shin and Mark.

The Warmind said, "Please, keep me away from your brother!"

"I'll try my best." Both of us killed the Wizards that floated around the ledges and the Thrall running out of the door in the middle, then moved back as soon as we dropped our Charges for the 2nd pair of Runes and when Mala and Anna said, "Switching!" Once we reached the 10th pair, the shrill said, "THIS IS GETTING ANNOYING! KNIGHTS, DO YOUR DUTIES!" That's when the Cleaver Knights appeared, some of which were stronger than others.

We kept shouting, "Knight is moving to the left!" or "They're going to the right!" while we were swapping places and dropping off Charges. By the 14th pair, two Knights appeared instead of one. All we heard on the comms was a "YOW!" from Mark, then Ras fired at the Knights with his Machine Gun, killing them. Shin and Mark swapped spots with Mala and Anna, and we just kept moving forward.

After charging the 20th pair, the shrill shouted, "FINE! YOU WANT A CHALLENGE? I'LL GIVE YOU A CHALLENGE!" The magical door opened up, and a chest appeared in front of it. Everyone rushed to the chest, grabbing more Moldering Shards, and I snatched a Fusion Rifle carved from bone and marrow. Upon touching it, I hear a voice saying, "I see now that everything dies. Even..." she begins to sob, "even memory."

I dropped it immediately in shock and sadness. "Strange," I whispered.

"What is?" asked Mala.

"It spoke."

"Huh," then she took the weapon and infused its power into her Sniper. The rest of us took identical Fusion Rifles, infused them into our snipers, and moved into the next part of the Basilica.

This part, which was dubbed "The Warpriest's Chamber" had multiple levels and platforms. The ground claimed a majority of the room, holding a plate in the center and a rough monolith planted in the ground in front of that. To the right was a set of stairs leading to a large platform with a plate in the top left corner, another planted monolith in front of it, and at the bottom right were 2 flights of stairs that lead to a small balcony at the top. On the left side was another platform, there was another plate, this time being shadowed by a floating monolith. To the top left of this platform was a small, angled bridge, leading to the other half of the room, which was symmetrical and raised to a level between the left platform and the right platform. The sides of that half each had a sub-room in the back corners and the middle had a plaque with the depiction of a Hive Knight with a similar build and armor to Alak-Hul, except this Knight had an oversized, angular jaw and a triangular horn as a helmet. Above the middle was a giant blighted sphere called the Oculus.

As soon as all of us entered, we turned around to see the magical barrier close behind us. Then we heard a Hive teleportation in progress, and the shrill announced its entry, "I AM ALAK-ZUL, THE WORLD-CRUSHER, THE SON OF XIVU ARATH, THE WARPRIEST OF ORYX, AND NOW, I SHALL BE CALLED 'LIGHT-SNUFFER'!"

Alak-Zul moved close to the edge and fired his Boomer at us. I shouted, "SCATTER!" and we did: Mala and Mark took the middle, Ras and Anna went to the right side, while Shin and I handled the left platform. Thrall came out of the nooks and crannies in the middle and Acolytes and Wizards ran to the sides of the Warpriest. Anna fired her Zhalo at the Acolytes, chaining electricity across the Hive on the right side, killing them. The Warpriest fired at Anna and Ras and they hid behind a joint in the flights of stairs. Mark and Mala hid from the Warpriest by pressing their backs against the wall opposite the monoliths and beneath Alak-Zul's platform. Shin and I killed the Acolytes and the Wizard on our side, then we heard a low growl emanate throughout the room, and a Knight came out of a small doorway on each of the sides.

I shouted, "Watch out, guys! These Knights are tougher than the typicals!"

Everyone else replied with, "Alrighty then!" and as soon as we killed the three Knights, one Monolith began to glow. Mala shouted, "Ok, I'll tell you guys which monoliths are lit."LEFT!" I jumped onto the left plate and stood still. "RIGHT!"

"Roger!" we replied.

"LEFT!" I jumped onto the left plate and stood still. "RIGHT!"

Ras ran to his plate, leaving Mark to take the middle plate and the Brand of the Initiate. "Ugh! I'm feeling unstable!"

"Everyone, go to the right! Mark might've found a way to kill Alak-Zul!"

Acolytes appeared out of nowhere in the middle. We gathered near the right plate and started sniping at the Warpriest. Mark's head began to throb, and he fell to his knees until he accidentally threw his knife at an Acolyte's head. Every time we sniped at Alak-Zul's head, the Warpriest began to stumble a little. After Mark killed 5 Acolytes, the Brand disappeared and Alak-Zul said, "OCULUS! WIPE THEIR EXISTENCE AWAY!"

The Oculus expanded, searing its gaze into anything that wasn't a Warpriest. Luckily for us, the monolith that we hid behind protected us from the gaze. The Warpriest dissolved the monolith his new powers as the Oculus shrunk. Alak-Zul fired Darkness Blasts at us, similar to a Taken Captain, and we ran back to our spots. I asked, "Jared, can you play War Pigs?"

My Ghost said, "I'll try." A few seconds later, our comms and most of the room was filled with Black Sabbath. As we killed Hive soldiers, the music grew louder. Just as the Knights appeared, the first verse began to sing. "Generals gathered in their masses," I sang as I killed the left Knight, "Just like witches at black masses!"

Alak-Zul screamed, "WHAT KIND OF NOISE DEFILES THIS HOLY GROUND!?"

Mark said, "Max, could you please stop singing!?" just as I sang the second verse.

Anna shouted, "Good choice, Max!" then sang in a metal voice, "In the fields of bodies burning, as the war machine keeps turning!" and she killed the

Ras beamed, "Death and Hatred to mankind, poisoning their brainwashed minds," then he shot down the middle knight from afar, "OH LORD YEAH!"

Mala said, "MIDDLE!" and Mark landed on the plate. "LEFT!" and then Shin touched the plate. A pillar of red light stood where the dissolved monolith once was, and Anna jumped onto the plate. She shouted, "MIDDLE!" All of us ran close to the magical door, about 5 feet away, and we sniped at the Warpriest's head, with Anna killing an Acolyte every 8 to 9 seconds. All the while, Shin sang, "Politicians hide themselves away, they only started the war! Why should they go out to fight? They'll leave that role to the poor! YEAH!"

The Warpriest growled, the Oculus expanded, and we hid behind the middle monolith. Alak-Zul absorbed the monolith's power of a Retaliation Swarm when the Oculus shrunk again. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS!" he shouted.

The Image of Oryx screamed to life, "AS HAVE I! WHY HAVEN'T YOU KILLED THEM, ALAK-ZUL!?"

"THE HIVE WERE-"

"NOT CHALLENGING ENOUGH! LET MY SERVANTS HANDLE THIS!"

Instantly, Taken Psions and Wizards began to spawn on all sides. Malahayahti sang the next four verses that would've made Ozzy Osbourne jealous, as she mowed down the middle wave, "Time will tell on their power minds, making war just for fun. Treating people just like pawns in chess. Wait 'til their Judgment Day comes! YEAH!"

Anna used her Zhalo against the Taken on the right side, and I fell into Stormtrance and cleaned up the left side, triggering the Taken Knights to spawn on the plates, and I raced back to kill the one on the left. Mala threw a Smoke Bomb at the middle Knight's head, intoxicating and killing it, and threw her Vortex Grenade at the right Knight, weakening it for Ras's kill.

The right red pillar glowed. Mala shouted, "RIGHT!" Anna stepped on her plate. "MIDDLE!" Mala reached the plate in time, I jumped onto mine, taking the brand, and shouted, "To the left, below the plate!"

We stood behind the left monolith and began sniping at The Warpriest's head, just as the first of the last 8 verses were sung by none other than Mark. When we staggered Once again, I killed 5 Acolytes within 8 to 9 seconds of each other. The song moved into an instrumental, the Oculus expanded, we stood behind the monolith, reloading our weapons.

The Oculus shrunk again, dissolving the last monolith, and giving its power of Axion Darts to Alak-Zul. "YOU HAVE COME FAR ENOUGH!" The Warpriest threw his Boomer at me and Shin and we used the Force to deflect and send it into the Oculus. Alak-Zul condensed his Oculus into a sword, using it to fire Bolts of Darkness at each of us, as well as the typical Darkness blasts and Axion Darts.

"Keep it going!" I shouted, "We have to make it!" The Warpriest jumped down to the ground and charged after Mark and Mala. "RUN, FORREST! RUN!" I shouted.

"THERE IS NOWHERE FOR YOU TO HIDE!" The Warpriest slashed his sword whenever he got close to one of us. I could feel the heavy void of death whenever that blade approached me. The edge between Life and Death had never felt so close, mere atoms away from each other. "YOUR UNIVERSE WILL BOW BEFORE ORYX!"

Taken Knights spawned on the plates, we killed two as quickly as we could, and just as we were about to the kill the third, Alak-Zul slammed his sword down at us, inadvertently slicing through the Knight like it was butter. I distracted the Warpriest as Anna, Mala, and Shin jumped onto their plates in that order. Shin staggered the Warpriest with her Hand Cannons as she approached, shouting, "CHARGE!" We lashed out with our swords, combating against Alak-Zul and his deathly blade. I chopped off the arms and Shin stabbed Alak-Zul in the neck. He screamed so loud that it almost shattered our ears, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" as his head was chopped off and sent flying into the plaque, shattering it with a small tap, revealing another Rupture, just as the song ended.

The Dreadnaught rumbled and whined. "The next shield layer is down!" I shouted into the comms, "Cayde! You are clear for the core!"

Anna was busy stripping the dead Warpriest of his armor and attaching it to hers, while Mark took the cloak and said in a sing-song voice, "Ohohohohoh! This is AWESOME!"

Anna tore off the end of the cloak and strapped it to her belt, "Uhh-huh."

I ripped out Alak-Zul's skeleton, discovering that each long bone was a different weapon, amounting to 6 Sniper Rifles, 6 Machine Guns, and 6 Rocket Launchers. I picked one of each, listening to their cries one at a time:

"Shields up! Protect the Queen! Brace for impact! Save the Quee—" shouted the Sniper.

"Hungry...hungry...SO HUNGRY!" growled the Rocket Launcher.

"If only...if only we had heeded the Queen..." sobbed the Machine Gun.

The Dreadnaught rumbled again, Oryx's voice boomed, "YOU GUYS ARE STARTING TO ANNOY ME! CAN'T YOU SEE THAT THIS IS WHAT THE UNIVERSE NEEDS!? A FRESH START WITH A NEW GOD!?"

I infused my new Sniper into my Praetorian Foil and my Rocket Launcher into my Dark-Drinker, pulled a Calcified Fragment from the Warpriest's skull, and dumped it into the Scout Rifle frame. I also took a small dagger from Alak-Zul's belt and attached it to the frame like it was a bayonet. "Come on, guys!" I shouted, "We're on the clock!" Everyone else rushed with their gear. Mala pried the sword out of the Warpriest's dead fingers and sheathed it. We ran through the portal.

* * *

Ir Halak and Ir Anuk floated on their pedestals in the long Threshold, charging the Vex Weapon Core and the blighted Shrine of Oryx respectively. "Will they come, oh sister mine?" asked Ir Halak.

"Worry not, oh twin of mine," replied Ir Anuk, "Your Unraveling and my Weaving will make short work of the Universe."

"I wasn't worrying, my other half, I am anticipating."


	53. The King's Origin

THE KING'S ORIGIN

 **50 minutes remaining**

Cayde was busy dogfighting Hive Fighters and Tomb Ships when he got our message. He looked over his shoulder to find the inner workings of the Dreadnaught vulnerable to attacks. "Guys!" he shouted into his comms, "There's a new openin' in the Dreadnaught, one that leads straight to the center!"

"Copy that, Blade Leader," said Shiro-4 over the radio, "All teams except Void, move into the core!"

"Roger, Blade 2!" said Solar 5.

"We read you, Shiro," answered Arc 12.

22 ships dove for the core, weaving themselves around the dark, archaic pillars and ancient structures to reach a huge, barely lit spherical room with a large crystalline Hadium shell. "Anyone want to guess what's in there?" asked the Hunter Vanguard.

"Yeah. The cores and the Shrine, no doubt," answered a Warlock from the Solar team.

"Warlocks, you know what to do," said the Vanguard Scout.

The available Warlocks focused on the Hadium shell, trying to find a weakness in the structure. Just then, there was a loud reverberation across the shell, knocking the ships back a few feet. "It's no use! We can't get through!" they said.

"WHAT!? HOW!?" shouted Shiro.

"A powerful spell, something that no one, not even Oryx, could maintain," answered a female Warlock, "There must be a powerful rune or a tablet of runes to hold the spell in place."

"Alright," said Cayde, "Max, keep looking through the-" Immediately, Hive Fighters poured out of the hatchways and began attacking the Guardian fleets, killing 5 Guardians. "Max! I'm going to have to call you back! We're being swarmed!" The Hunter Vanguard began dogfighting with numerous Hive Fighters, sending them crashing into every wall in the giant space.

* * *

"Copy that, Cayde-6!" I replied, "Over and out." The portal took us to a barely lit blue hallway that would've created claustrophobia within anyone, with dirt flooding the ground and rounded shelves sticking out of the walls, lopsided for most of the time, sometimes even laying on the ground as obstacles or barriers. "What is this place?" I asked, hoping for Eris to answer.

No reply.

"Guess we'll find out on our own."

As we dove deeper into the hallway, the surroundings became darker, holes were becoming more common than before, and I had a creepy feeling that crawled down my spine as we walked further into the hall that would turn into a labyrinth. The scent was damp and filled with a deathly odor that would've made anyone puke. In fact, all of us (except for Mala) vomited at least once or twice, maybe three times. "Jeez!" said Mark after he puked in his helmet, "You'd think that Oryx would have a nice place to put his failed experiments."

"They don't call this a cellar for nothing," said Mala.

I puked without my helmet, "Yeah, let's find a way out of here." At the first intersection, we took a left to another intersection, every path except for the one that we came from was a dead end. "Damn! Wrong tur-" A blinking faint blue light caught my attention off the left. "Hang on! I found something!"

"Oh sure," puked Shin, "And waste more time in this dump!?"

"You guys go ahead, I'll follow you!" I assured.

"Alright," Shin turned to the others, "Back the way we came!"

Ras removed his helmet and puked out motor oil before leaving with the others. _Nasty!_ I parkoured on the left side to reach the 46th Calcified Fragment. As I glided down and placed the new Fragment into the frame, blurred visions danced around me, one of a court with three daughters as heirs, another of medieval balls held in an old king's honor, and then the same king was killed in his sleep that night. I heard a voice say, _"Aurash! Don't go in!"_ right before I fainted.

* * *

 _Aurash peaked into her father's bedroom and crept in. The druids and the doctors confirmed that the Osmium King was dead and rushed out. Her sisters, Xi Ro and Sathona, followed after her as they approached Taox, second-in-command to the throne, neutered mother, designated to watch the throne, and the heirs' tutor. She asked in an extra-terrestrial language, "Children, do you know why your father died?"_

 _"Old age," they answered._

 _"Yes," said the tutor, then muttered, "Heh, old age." She straightened her voice and said, "Wait outside, I'll come get you when the time is right."_

 _"Ok," they replied and walked out of the room. Aurash discovered a small glass dish on her father's desk and opened it up. Inside was a pale white wyrm carcass, yet it could still speak._

 _Taox barked, "Get away from there!" She drew a knife and inched closer to the eldest triplet heir._

 _"Why do you have a knife drawn against me?" she asked, "I've done nothing wrong."_

 _"You are weak! You and your sisters have no place on the Osmium Throne!"_ _Taox brought down the knife, but Aurash was faster than her mentor, and she ran out the room with the wyrm. "THAT'S RIGHT! RUN! RUN FAR AWAY FROM THIS COURT, AURASH! WE, THE HELIUM DRINKERS, WILL HUNT YOU DOWN AND KILL YOU! ALL OF THE OSMIUM COURT WILL BE EXAMPLES IF THE REST OF FUNDAMENT AND ITS KRILL DO NOT COOPERATE!"_

 _Aurash ran back to her sisters, "Xi Ro, Sathona, I've got news for you."_

 _"Pray tell," said Xi Ro_

 _"Yes, yes, please do," replied Sathona._

 _Aurash stumbled for the words, "O-o-our fath-th-th-ther was k-k-killed!"_

 _"Who did this?" asked Xi Ro, "I will hunt them down, and by my left eye, I will torture and slaughter them, their family, their friends, and everyone else in their clan!"_

 _"By my right eye," said Sathona, "I will confuse them first, torture them second, and mutilate them last!"_

 _"Oh sisters mine," answered Aurash, "It was Taox, our mentor and trusted ally. By my middle eye, I will devote myself to understanding the force that drove her to this point, and why our father spoke of a syzygy and the God-Wave."_

 _As they left, Xi Ro began to mutter, "I will come back for you, Taox, and when I do, I will kill you slowly and painfully."_

 _Two years later, the triplets were far away from the Osmium Court, now overrun by the Helium drinkers. They found a giant ship in the shape of a needle on a shoreline and had begun to repair it. Sathona was drawn more to the wyrm than her sisters; it began to resonate with her, guide her, lead her. Sathona dreamt of being a mother not to give birth, but to live longer than the average Krill. Xi Ro always wanted to be a knight, fighting in wars, conquering nations, etc. She wanted to sell the ship for a good deal of money, then bribe another court to take on the Helium Drinkers. When Aurash saw their father make a syzygy with his hands and his warnings of a God-Wave, she sought to understand the ways of the universe and why it works the way that it does, and this ship was the key. Against Xi Ro's wishes, Sathona and Aurash repaired the ship, and the three of them took it for a joyride, with Aurash at the wheel._

 _Another two years go by and they were nowhere near their presumed victory. "We should've sold this ship while we had the chance!" said Xi Ro, "There's no doubt that the Helium Drinkers would've annihilated and assimilated everyone else by now!"_

 _"Patience," said Sathona, "The Drinkers always expect brutal tactics, killing them won't be easy."_

 _"Sisters," said Aurash, "This ship was meant to dive into the core, I suggest that we do just that." And so they dove into the planet for six months before reaching a giant Leviathan._

 _It met them in front of the ship and declared, "Krill-people of thy Court of Osmium, the path that thou seek is fret with danger. Turn back and thou lives doth spared."_

 _Xi Ro asked her sisters, "Do any of you know what he's saying?"_

 _"Not a clue," they answered sarcastically._

 _"Dost thou know what thou art doing? Turn back from thy Deep and doth look to the Sky."_

 _Aurash interrogated the Leviathan with, "What about the syzygy and the God-Wave?"_

 _"Verily, I tell thee: Abandon thou quest and ye shall live; Remain on point and ye shall die."_

 _"Sisters," said Sathona, "The wyrm speaks true and clearly, do you want to listen to a creature speaking in false parables? Or do you want the truth?"_

 _"The truth!" they announced, "We need the truth!"_

 _"Then we shall dive further, oh sisters mine!" Sathona took the wheel away from Aurash, weaved around the Leviathan, avoiding its mouth and charging claws, and finally dove into a small opening that led to the planet's core._

 _Instead of a solid core that was composed of a superheated iron-nickel alloy, there was an inner world, one infested with large dragons, lava, and gold. In the center of this world sat a 20 foot jet black, red-eyed figure wearing sleek and spiked wrought iron armor on a wretched golden throne with nine jet black dragons clad in ominous iron armor surrounding him. The triplets stepped onto the top of this ship to greet the figure. Aurash said, "We've come for answers, your highness!" and bowed with her sisters._

 _The figure stepped toward to their ship and spoke in their language, "Greetings, Xi Ro, Knight Supreme, Sathona, Mother of Trickery, and Aurash, Scholar of Death. We have awaited your arrival."_

 _"Thank you, your highness," said Aurash._

 _Xi Ro stepped out of her bow and stood, "How do we take back the Osmium Court?"_

 _"No," said the figure._

 _"Can we survive against the Helium Drinkers?" asked Sathona as she stood._

 _"Useless," the figure turned and walked back to his throne, "Be gone!"_

 _Still bowing, Aurash shouted, "How do we survive against the syzygy and its God-Wave?" Her voice echoed throughout the world. Some of the dragons landed on solid ground when that happened, but all turned to look at the only Krill bowing before their master._

 _The figure turned and grinned at Aurash. Walking back to the ship, he said, "Good! That's a very good question! And for you, I have the answers." He turned to one of the nine elites, "AKKA! BRING THE WYRMS!" Akka descended to the grotto below the throne and brought up a bucket of infant wyrms in its claw. "Now," he addressed the triplets, "these wyrms provide you with the powers you seek to save your people and yourselves. And since you three are the first to seek my counsel, I will let you become not just leaders of your race, but Gods of Fundament! Pick your wyrms."_

 _Xi Ro butted in, "I want to lead armies, conquer worlds, and slaughter our enemies until the only race that remains are the Krill!"_

 _"Then you get the Knight Wyrm: power over your strongest enemies!"_

 _Sathona cut Aurash off, "I want to deceive our foes, make members of their race turn against one another, commit wars against each other so that I will kill or enslave the last one!"_

 _"The Wizard Wyrm it is!"_

 _Finally, Aurash had her turn. "I want to not just understand death or fear, but to become it and everything I love AND hate! I want to rule the Universe! All of them!"_

 _The figure grinned, "You shall have the King Wyrm, my own concoction!" He handed each wyrm to their respective sister and said, "Lie down and put them close to your stomachs."_

 _With the wyrms in hand, the triplets did as they were told and felt the pain of their wyrm burrowing under their skin. Xi Ro felt some pain as she grew tenfold, jacked up her muscles, and renamed herself Xivu Arath. Sathona felt more pain as she grew to the same size as her sister, her fingers becoming jagged and full of wisps, ready to conjure any spell, taking the name Savathun. But Aurash was different..._

 _She felt the most pain as her wyrm devoured her stomach, liver, uterus, lungs, and heart. She felt the most pain when its tail grew in between her thighs on her front, transforming her into a male 20 times larger than the original form, growing wings on his back. That was the day that Aurash became Auryx, King of the Hive!_

* * *

I woke up from my vision of the past to discover that I've been moved. "How did I get here?" I stood to take a look around the giant room and noticed that it had a large shallow pit in the middle with a raised floor in the shape of a 'U'. Only two tombs were found in the room, one on the middle of the back left of the floor and the other mirrored its position. In front of each tomb was a small set of stairs leading to the laterals of the floor. Further down the laterals were another pair of stairs leading to the pit, beside the tops of the stairs were two halves of a bridge, and to the other side of the stairs stood a cylindrical obelisk with six dormant runes in the back of the pit. The lighting of the room was an eerie, poisonous blue and the ceiling was angular, spewing this light around the room. On the ceiling, above the front part of the pit, were six stationary claws, each containing a light blue bubble that could be shot down.

"Are you alright, Max?" asked Shin.

Memories of the vision coursed through my head, mostly about the dark figure and his dragons, "I recognized him! The Dark Lord!"

"What?" interrogated Ras, "A dark lord? Like Voldemort?"

"Or Vader?" questioned Mark.

"Or Sauron?" asked Shin.

"Worse!" I replied.

Mala closed her eyes for one minute, concentrating. "What did he look like?"

"Wretched wrought iron armor, hammering red eyes, and he breeds dragons!"

"Melkor!" muttered Anna.

"Who?" asked Ras, Mark, and Shin.

Mala opened her eyes, "The first Dark Lord! And he has a god under his thumb!"


	54. Beast Killers

BEAST KILLERS

 **35 minutes remaining**

"Melkor?" asked Shin, "The Vala who added a Song of Discord to Eru's Song of Creation? That Melkor!?"

"The same," answered Mala.

"We're doomed," said Mark, "WE'RE DOOMED!"

"Hey!" I said, "We're not doomed, not yet anyway! Melkor is still locked away inside the void, so that's some good news. But we still have 30 minutes before the whole Universe goes belly up. Now, one of the Warlocks said that a Tablet of Ruin is the only thing protecting the core's shell, right?"

"Right," they answered.

"So? How about that obelisk in the back of the room?"

Mark squinted at the obelisk as he moved closer to the edge of the floor, "That's it!" he exclaimed, "That's the Tablet of Ruin!"

"What else did you do with Toland?" asked Ras suspiciously.

"Oh, now you care? I went on a couple of dates with him and Eriana-3."

Ras clutched at Mark's throat and held him high, "And so you think that I'm just another dildo to shove up your butt!?"

"No!" the Hunter croaked, "You're a valid Exo with feelings and everything! please let me go!" His voice was about to give way until Ras dropped him. Mark panted as he got back to his feet, "I'll stop chasing you from now on."

"Good."

"If you two are done killing each other," I shouted, "Then I suggest that we destroy this Tablet with our Heavys before it's too late!" Everyone pulled out a Machine Gun or a Rocket Launcher and fired the Tablet, but to no avail. Suddenly, the pool in the middle of the pit began to ooze. Two large hands reached out of the pool, clinging to the edges and pulling a large Ogre out of the small pool, spewing both Hive and Taken ectoplasm. The Ogre had a vertical slit on the top of its skull, six large insect-like tentacles on its back, and one obese stomach sitting on its tiny legs. The Ogre growled as Hive/Taken Hybrid Thrall crawled out of every crevasse in the pit. "TAKE COVER!" I shouted. The Ogre shot its Eye Beam at us as the Hybrid Thrall charged up the back stairs on either side. All of us dove behind the tombs: Mark, Mala, and Anna took the right while Ras, Shin and I covered the left. The Thrall ran down the laterals toward us and we opened fire on all of them. The Ogre growled again, Acolytes

The Ogre had a vertical slit on the top of its skull, six large insect-like tentacles on its back, and one obese stomach sitting on its tiny legs. The Ogre growled as Hive/Taken Hybrid Thrall crawled out of every crevasse in the pit. "TAKE COVER!" I shouted. The Ogre shot its Eye Beam at us as the Hybrid Thrall charged up the back stairs on either side. All of us dove behind the tombs: Mark, Mala, and Anna took the right while Ras, Shin and I covered the left. The Thrall ran down the laterals toward us and we opened fire on all of them. The Ogre growled again, Hybrid Acolytes walked out of the side doors, some of which were Adepts. Shin fired her Last Word and Hawkmoon at the Acolytes before moving on to the Adepts, Anna did the same on her side. The Ogre fired its beam again

The Ogre fired its beam at us again. Mark examined the Beast from behind cover, taking note of the strange brandings on its arms, legs, chest, and skull. "Golgoroth!" he mumbled.

"What?" I asked as everyone went for ammo, "What did you say, Mark?"

"Golgoroth!" he shouted over the radio, "The Ogre's name is Golgoroth!"

"Let me guess," Shin said, "Toland's journal?"

"Journals, actually."

Golgoroth fired its eye beam at us again. "Do those journals describe how to defeat it!?," I said as I ran for cover.

" _'Brave are the ones to strike its back, but watch out for its enraged attack. Reclaim the ground with light, and trust in your own might,'_ " chanted the Hunter.

"Less poetry and more strategy!" shouted the Warmind.

I said to myself, _Light? Our own supers can't produce pure Light!_

Osiris appeared before me again, "That is a strategy."

"But how do we reclaim the ground with light?" Then I saw the bubbles, "With those?"

"Yep."

I spoke into the radio, "Mark, can you shoot the Ogre's back?"

"I can, but according to the journals-"

"Are you willing to do it?"

"Yeah, but his venom-"

"Can you survive it?"

"If I run around like a madman."

"Good, then the rest of us will jump into the pit."

Golgoroth fired its eye beam at us again, we took cover and said, "NOW!" Anna shot down the bubble on the bottom left, Ras jumped to the corresponding corner of the pit and deployed his Ward of Dawn with Weapons of Light. Everyone except for Mark joined Ras in the Ward until Mark shot Golgoroth's back with a sniper. The Ogre growled as its tentacles closed to protect its squishy back, then spat an ugly stream of purple venom at the Hunter. The rest of us ran out of the Ward and into the Pool of Reclaimed Light, and together, we shot at its now open stomach with snipers.

"I can't take this venom anymore!" said Mark, "Someone needs to shift its gaze!"

I jumped up to the floor, shot at The Ogre's back, and shouted, "WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, YOU UGLY KALED!?" Golgoroth growled at me and spat its venom. Mark joined the others in the pit. I took cover as the other guys fired away with snipers and heavies. The Ogre's venom reached my left arm after 10 seconds with the gaze. I shouted, "A little help!"

Shin jumped up, shifted the gaze and said to the Ogre, "YOU WANT A PIECE OF ME?" Golgoroth spat more vomit, the Pool faded, and everyone jumped up to the floor to continue firing. Shin's robes hissed as she yelped, Anna took Golgoroth's attention, followed by Mala and Ras respectively. Once Ras shot the Ogre's back, it slammed the ground, lighting the bottom rune on the Tablet. "Uh oh!" we said. More Hybrids popped out of the ground, and we repeated the whole cycle 2 more times, lighting next 2 rising runes.

The Image of Oryx blazed to life again, "WHY MUST YOU TORTURE MY POOR PET!? HE'S ONLY GUARDING MY TABLET OF RUIN!"

"WELL," I shouted at the Image, "WOULD YOU CARE TO EXPLAIN WHY YOUR TABLET IS THREATING OUR EXISTENCE!? HMM!?"

"I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS! COME FORTH, MY SERVANTS! SLAY THESE NON-BELIEVERS FOR GOOD!" Taken Thrall warped into the room by the dozens as the Image faded. Mark shot down the fourth bubble and took the Gaze. We sniped at the Ogre's stomach as soon as Mala fired her Void Arrow at it, pinning it to the ground. Taken Thrall warped themselves behind us, I struck the ground as I fell into my Stormtrance, and focused on the incoming Taken, grabbing the Gaze for just a few seconds before it was Shin's turn. Anna took the gaze after Shin held it for 15 seconds, then dropped the fifth bubble to continue our damage output. Mala fired 3 more Arrows in rapid succession, one at the Ogre's back and the other two toward the ceiling. Golgoroth began to dangle like a piñata, failing its limbs and spewing venom everywhere. Ras took the Gaze from Mala, the Tablet of Ruin blazed to life, and our vision began to fade to black. Mark drew Eirfaeril, leaped into the final Bubble of Light, absorbed it, and charged after Golgoroth. He grabbed onto one of the Ogre's legs, stabbing his sword and his Arc Blade into its groin, stomach, and right arm before decapitating it and hurling its head into the Tablet, shattering it to pieces and revealing a Calcified Fragment at its base.

The rest of the body fell, and so did Mark. I heard a loud CRACK from his direction. All of us ran to help him. "Are you alright?" I asked, "Do you need some rest?"

"Yeah," he said weakly, "Maybe."

Mala offered, "I'll dissect Golgoroth for you, Mark."

He grinned, "Thank you, but I think that you should have it."

"Really? Thanks!"

"No problem!" Then he turned to me as I grabbed the Fragment, "Max, how much longer do we have?"

A portal opened in front of us and I said, "Not much, so let's keep moving!" I loaded the Fragment into the scout rifle frame. Malahayahti finished up with applying the Ogre's skin to her armor, then Mark sewed it until it was secure, before all of us hopped through the portal.

* * *

Cayde was too busy dogfighting with multiple Hive Fighters to notice that the shield surrounding the core's shell was down. One of the Warlocks said, "Look, Cayde! The shield has disintegrated!"

Cayde looked through the cockpit windows to see the defenseless shell. _By the Traveler, she's right!_ "All inner units," he said through the comms, "Attack the shell!" Every Guardian jumpship fired its blasters at the Hadium shell, splintering and shattering it into atoms. Inside were three different objects floating above a circular platform: One was the Vex Weapon Core, another was the Shrine of Oryx, and the last one was an Ascendant Tomb, all three of which surrounded a long, red, extremely reactive crystalline structure. "Max, we have a situation!"

 _"What is it, Cayde?"_ I asked over the comms.

The Hunter Vanguard maneuvered the ship closer to the tomb for a better look, "For starters, we found Crota's tomb; and second, we might not make it out of here alive!"


	55. Apotheosis

APOTHEOSIS

 **20 minutes remaining**

"WHAT!?" I shouted through the comms, "WHY NOT!?"

 _"Because they surround the Dreadnaught core!"_ replied Cayde, _"That's why!"_

"Alright," I sighed, "We'll find a way around that." After picking up another Calcified Fragment, we ran through a large doorway and reached the Transcept, which was a long, slanted hall with long platforms and rapid pistons along the left side. Taken Acolytes warped on each platform that we landed on, and we killed every one of them. The pistons, however, were more trouble than they're worth; they almost pushed us off the side at breakneck speeds! After braving the pistons, Mark stepped on one of the three plates in the room and activated two crossing platforms. Anna crossed the platforms and stepped to the next plate. Mala did the same thing, and stepped on the last plate, activating the last two and locking all of the platforms in position. All of us crossed the platforms, then parkoured up the left side to reach the next doorway. Off to the side was another Calcified Fragment.

Off to the side was another Calcified Fragment; as soon as I picked it up and loaded it into the frame, I fainted.

* * *

 _Auryx stood in the dining hall of his Throne World. Gathered at the table were his sisters, Xivu Arath and Savathun, his children, Crota, Ir Anuk and Ir Halak, Xivu Arath's sons, Alak-Hul and Alak-Zul, and Savathun's daughter, a wizard named Balwur. "My sisters, our children," he addressed, "A toast," everyone raised a goblet filled with Eliksni blood, "To our crusades and to the High War!"_

 _"Amen!" they said and they drank the blood. Crota took the bread and the corpse of an Eliksni Captain from the center and broke off one of its limbs. Ir Anuk took the serving plates and helped herself before her sister claimed her share, and so did the plate circle around the table, with Xivu Arath and Savathun claiming the lion's share._

 _Then two Acolytes appeared from a corner of the hall, struggling to hold, at each end, a long plate with a lid on top. "Your Highness!" they cried._

 _Auryx rushed over, took the plate, and went back to his seat at the head of the table. He lifted the lid and tossed it to the side. On the plate was the dead Kell of Stone, Chelchis. The Hive King dug in, and so did everyone else._

 _Suddenly there was a rumble throughout the Throne World, followed by a soft mechanical whirring. Everyone stopped eating and paused, waiting for something else to happen. The whirring grew louder and louder. Everyone rushed for their weapons and ran into the study, where hundreds of Precursor Vex appeared. The Hive King and his Ascendants stopped, every Vex unit turned its head at the group, analyzing each of them to the slightest detail. Then their eyes turned from blue to red and they attacked. Auryx led the charge and began beheading each and every robot in the large study, only to discover that it just enraged them. Just as everyone was about to be overwhelmed, Auryx slammed the ground with his hand, causing every Vex unit to burst. "WHO LET THESE INTERLOPERS IN MY HOUSE!?" he bellowed._

 _No one answered._

 _"I WON'T ASK A SECOND TIME!"_

 _Ir Anuk called out, "Crota!"_

 _Ir Halak continued, "He tore a hole in the Universe with his sword, trying to prove-"_

 _Auryx didn't need any explanation as he charged towards his son, picked him up by the legs, stomped over to the hole, and shouted in Crota's face, "EITHER COME BACK VICTORIOUS OR DIE FORGOTTEN!" Then he hurled his son into the Vex Gate System, sealed up the hole completely, and turned back to the Dining Hall._

 _Savathun was impressed, "You have done well, brother!"_

 _Auryx clutched his fist, charged toward his sister, and clutched her by the throat. "YOU DID THIS!" he_ _shouted, "YOU TOLD CROTA TO OPEN THAT HOLE! YOU SUGGESTED THAT WE SHOULD HAVE A VICTORY DINNER! YOU WANTED ME TO CAST MY FAMILY IN DIFFERENT DIMENSIONS! THIS WAS ALL YOUR FAULT!" He tossed her out of a window, where she warped into her own Throne World. Auryx did the same thing with Xivu Arath, but not the other children._

 _Balwur said, "Well, Uncle Auryx, it's been fun. I'll just depart-"_

 _"You're not going anywhere!" he said sternly, "All of you are staying here!" The Hive King lowered his voice, "I thought that I could trust my sisters after so long," then he raised it, "Now I realize that I can't trust any of my siblings, but their children," he turned to look at them, "We are going to be one big happy family!"_

 _Alak-Zul shivered, Alak-Hul hid his gritting teeth, and Balwur grimaced._

 _Auryx declared, "And we shall start with a Dreadnaught!" without considering the pain that his niece and nephews might feel._

 _Ir Anuk and Ir Halak disappeared, and immediately the Throne World began to quake, bleeding dark energy from the cracks and crevices. Auryx held onto the other children (who were in their teens) and everyone was brought to the Threshold: a long, open roof, windowless room that sat at the peak of Auryx's Throne World, serving as his personal bedroom, study, and battle room. Here, the Universe displayed itself as one massive star chart and Auryx could exercise his navigating skills. The Threshold was very cathedral-like and symmetrical on two axises. In each quadrant was a large raised plate, and to either side of the plate was a pool. Marking the border between the front and the back were two tall pillars that had the same radii as the plates._

 _The Twin Deathsingers were on top of the pillars, crafting their songs of unraveling and weaving, and effectively creating a Dreadnaught by inverting the Throne World and causing all of the outside 'blood' to harden into a Hadium/marrow composite. Then the Dreadnaught began to rise out of the Ascendant Realms and into the material Universe._

 _Auryx congratulated his daughters, "Well done, my daughters! Well done!"_

 _Just then, the dragon known as Akka flew into the Threshold, "JUST WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?"_

 _Auryx stood before Akka and bowed reverently, "I have learned my lesson," he said, "I know what you want me to do: Fight every nation, every person, every planet until only The Hive remain."_

 _"Then you know everything about the Sword-Logic," replied the dragon._

 _"That," said the Hive King, "and more," his tone more defined and threatening as he stood._

 _"What do you mean?"_

 _"The wyrms that you gave to me and my sisters continue to eat at our souls, even as we conquer and kill worlds. So we made a tithing system: Thrall to Acolytes, Acolytes to Knights and Wizards, Knights and Wizards to Ascendants, Ascendants to the three of us, and us to you, The Dark Lord and his dragons: The Ahamkara."_

 _"It seems good in theory, but-"_

 _"But," Auryx emphasized, "Every time we kill, we chew up a small portion of their souls to feed our worms."_

 _"Exactly. So what is your point?"_

 _"The wyrms are hungry for more, more souls, more power, more...devotion."_

 _Akka was confused and raised his head as such, "Devotion?"_

 _"Yes, I need more disciples, more people who are or will be devoted to my cause, who are willing to fight other nations and sacrifice their lives for me!"_

 _"YOU," bellowed the dragon, "ARE OVERSTEPPING A-"_

 _Before he could finish his sentence, Auryx flew up to Akka's height and chopped off his head. As he landed, the Hive King said, "And I need your blood to do just that."_

 _Alak-Hul was confused, "What do you mean?"_

 _Alak-Zul and Balwur pulled him away, "You'll find out," they said._

 _Auryx buried his sword into the dead heart, allowing it to marinate in the dragon's blood. Then he took some of the blood from inside the neck and spoke some dark incantations as he knelt, "Raza ili cushak. Raza ili Nazdur. Raza ili contaz rakshi." He stood and raised his voice so that the whole grotto could hear, "_ _Raza ili cushak!. Raza ili Nazdur!. Raza ili contaz rakshi!" Then he bellowed for the universe, "RAZA ILI CUSHAK! RAZA ILI NAZDUR! RAZA ILI CONTAZ **RAKSHI!** "_

 _The dragon exploded into flames, Auryx caught some and channeled it through his body, inverted it with the blood, and turned it into a massive weapon: The Power to Take. "Through this power, I no longer become a servant of a god, I become one!" He shouted to the fabric of time and space, "I AM ORYX, GOD OF THE HIVE! SOON, EVERYONE WILL BOW BEFORE ME, AS DISCIPLES OR SLAVES!"_

* * *

I woke up from my sleep, "Sacra Vacca! This Dreadnaught is his Throne!"

Everyone looked at me in confusion and asked, "What the Hellmouth does that mean!?"

"It means that we can kill Oryx here!"

* * *

Vosik stopped before a large diamond shaped door and ordered his Fallen to stop. "Cas tu ra!" (This is it!)

Aksis walked up to the door and felt it, "Effet ti droe frosa cat!" (Get me some cutters here!) Kovik handed a Golden Age plasma cutter to Aksis, and the three of them unlocked the door by force. Once they opened it up, the three Archons began to explore the interior of the octahedral room. A sinister voice greeted them in their tongue, "Grasssssssssstu! Gassssssssss te ler Sssssssssssssho Roksssssssssssho." (Greetings! This is the Replication Chamber.)

"Sho Roksho?" asked Vosik

"Ka! Ra kot googaa tu sssssssssssstraku! Ra kot googaa tu russsssssssssshako! Ra kot googaa tu...Kellsssssssssshu!" (Yes! It can grant you strength! It can grant you revenge! It can grant you...Kellhood!)

"Kellshu!?" exclaimed Kovik

Aksis didn't bat an eye when he said, "Fra Ta sheni ler conshaka!" (Then I accept the consequences!)

A massive red cloud of nanites descended on the triumvirate, attacking quickly, and sewing itself into the Archons' limbs, chests and heads. "CONSSSSSSSSSSUME ENHANCCCCCCCCCCCCCE REPLICATE!"


	56. God Slayers

GOD SLAYERS

 **15 minutes left**

Cayde fought with other Hive Fighters as he tried to make sense of what he saw: An unprotected tomb, a shielded Shrine, and a protected Weapon Core. Shiro shouted through the comms, "BLADE LEADER! WHAT DO WE DO? WE'VE ALREADY LOST 15 MEMBERS FROM ARC AND SOLAR SQUADRONS!"

Cayde addressed this situation by saying, "ALL VOID UNITS, MOVE INTO THE CORE!"

Void Leader said, "Sir, we can't see the opening!" Shiro fired his blasters through the hole, and then Void Leader said, "All units! Follow me!" Shiro stopped firing as the Void team moved in. "Stay on target!" said Void Leader.

"Watch your six!" shouted Void 15.

"Stay on target!" shouted the Leader.

"We're taking heavy fire!" yelled Void 20.

"STAY ON-!" Hive fighters shredded through a line of 10 ships, starting with Void Leader.

"Void Leader, do you read me?" asked Cayde. Nothing but white noise. "VOID SQUAD! WHAT'S YOUR STATUS!?"

5 ships flew into the core: Void 2, 7, 13, 16, and 18. "These are the remains," said Void 2, "5 ships from each squadron, plus you and Blade 2."

Cayde-6 sighed, "Alright, we still have a chance," he turned on his comms line to me, "Max, what's the plan?"

* * *

I replied, "Ok, you know that the Dreadnaught core can explode to the range of our sun, right?"

 _"Yeah, the Praxic Warlocks calculated that."_

"Do you see the Shrine and the Weapon Core?"

 _"Yeah, with Crota's tomb."_

I began to simulate that situation. "Ok, what if we blow up the Weapon Core, the Shrine, and the Tomb at the same time?"

 _"What good would that do?"_

Shin grinned with excitement, "It would create a vacuum large enough to contain or suck up the blast from the Dreadnaught Core!"

 _"Destroying the Hive and saving our Solar System!"_ Shiro realized, _"Will do, but the Shrine and the Weapon Core are protected. You need to knock out whatever is shielding it!"_

"Alright, let's move! We've only got 12 minutes!" We ran through the door and climbed up a pillar to reach the Threshold, just as it was seen in the vision: Open windows and slightly open roof to marvel at the Universe, Saturn could be seen in the front left, multitudes of stars behind it, and empty space on the right. The whole thing was cathedral-like, but its primary material was marrow and hadium. On top of each tall central pillar to either side of the main path was a Deathsinger: Ir Halak, the Unraveler on the right, and Ir Anuk, the Weaver on the left.

Ir Halak grinned and said, "They're here, oh sister mine!"

Ir Anuk replied, "They are, but what shall we do with them?"

Ir Halak's mouth grew into a wretched smile, then tossed a spell at Mala, dividing her corporeal body in between phases. "Oh dear!" said the Unraveler sarcastically, "It looks like Malahayahti is Torn Between Dimensions!" The Deathsingers cackled loudly.

I felt a chilly grasp on my shoulder. I turned around to find Mala pointing towards the ceiling at an angle. "I see something up there!" she said.

I looked in the direction she was pointing but saw nothing above the top-right plate. "Are you sure?" I asked.

She leaned into my ear and whispered, "Positive! And there are some platforms leading up to it in a counter-clockwise path," she drew the path with a chilly finger, "but they aren't fully in phase yet."

"Ok," I whispered back, "so how do we solidify them?"

"The plates!" whispered Shin, "We need to activate them in a certain order!" Then she shouted, "Everyone, take a plate! Mala, follow me!" Shin and Mala ran to the top-left plate, I went to the back-left, Anna to the top-right, and Ras to the back-right.

"They found a way!" Ir Halak screamed, "We have to stop them!" She began to glow red as she sang her Dirge of Unraveling in a rather throaty voice.

 _Come my sister, oh so vile,  
Sing of their deaths, filled with bile.  
In the Dreadnaught, big and bold,  
Were six Guardians, dead and cold!_

Shin stepped on her plate first so that Mala run across the platforms, then I stepped on my plate, then Ras, then Anna. Taken Acolytes spawned in the center, led by a Centurion. Mark mowed down the ads, except for the Centurion. Vandals began to spawn outside of the 'windows', but they were easily dispatched by our snipers. Mala got to the last platform, grabbed the glowing orb, became whole in our dimension again, and said, "Got it! Come to the middle, below Ir Anuk!" All of us stepped off the plates and ran to the platform below Ir Anuk. Mala stole the Unraveler's brand and joined us to shoot our snipers at the Deathsinger.

 _The Father's orders are to Unravel  
_ _To carve and scathe as we travel.  
Ours is righteous, but theirs is corrupt  
We shall do anything to dis-  
_

We shot Ir Halak through the red crack in her helmet, then she writhed and withered as she screamed and dissolved into dust. The Brand disappeared immediately after that.

Ir Anuk cried out, "I'll avenge you, oh twin of mine!" She tore Anna between dimensions began to sing the Hymn of Weaving:

 _To my twin, so filled with woe,_  
 _I shall sing to kill our foe._  
 _Within our home were intruders,_  
 _But I shall turn them into troopers!_

I hopped on my plate first, then Ras on his, then Mark on the top right plate, and finally, Shin on the top left. Mala was busy dealing with another wave of Taken, including the previous Centurion. Anna ran and jumped to each platform before finally landing on the last platform to grab the orb and become whole, "To the empty pillar!" She stole Ir Anuk's brand and landed on the empty pillar, and everyone else converged there, firing their heavy weapons.

 _The Father's orders are for Weaving,_  
 _Without it, we Hive wouldn't be breathing._  
 _So now, the hour draws near_  
 _We force them to believe there's nothing to-_

Mala pulled out her Sleeper, reloaded it, and fired 1 shot at Ir Anuk's head. It refracted many times, one of which punched her out of her plate and melting her into ashes. She screamed, deafening our ears, almost making them bleed. The brand disappeared. Her Shroud fell down near the top-left plate. I went down to grab it, and discovered 6 bone shotguns, all of which whispered, "Without victory, we cannot go home!" All of us grabbed a Shotgun and infused them into our snipers. I secured the Shroud into the Scout Rifle frame. "Ok," said Anna, "Now what?"

Two large hands grabbed the two front supports for the roof, pulling Oryx up until he blocked the view of Saturn. "NOW YOU DIE BEFORE GOD!" The Taken King was almost as tall as the Threshold, 20 feet to be exact. His eyes changed from the previous green to purple, and his size was double of his previous form.

Taken Thrall spawned in the two front pools, Mala went up to meet them, then when they converged on her, she fired her Shadowshot at the mass, tethering them to the ground and spawning many Orbs of Light. Taken Knights spawned on the two front plates and we dispatched them as soon as they appeared. I said to Jared, "Hey, can you play Stairway to Heaven?"

"I can try, but it probably won't work in-"

Oryx moved to the front left side, I told everyone, "BATTLE STATIONS!" and we ran to our plates. Ras and Anna dropped two Wards in the middle, one with Weapons of Light, the other with Blessings of Light, then ran back to their plates, just as Oryx slammed his fist on the front left plate, igniting it with black fire.

Mark jumped up on the fiery plate first, absorbing all of it and became Torn between Dimensions, all the while screaming for it to stop. Shin jumped up to the same plate so that he can run across the platforms.

I jumped up next saying, "We just heard Oryx speak! There must be some kind of atmosphere here!"

Ras and Anna hopped on their plates in that order. A Light-Eater Ogre crawled out of the closest pool to the pillar, Mala fired two Sleeper shots at it before it could walk, then she did same to the other Ogres that spawned in the other pillar pools. In their wake, massive amounts of Corrupted Light gathered. Light-Eater Knights spawned out of the pools, but we took them down with our snipers. Taken Acolytes followed and were easily killed off Mark reached the end of the platforms and got the Brand Claimer, just as a Hive Tombship cut through the middle line, dropping off the Vessel of Oryx. Both the Vessel and the Light-Eater Knights had a similar form: Traditional Knight bodies to hold horizontal diamond heads with a slit in the middle. The only differences between the two were their weapon of choice (cleavers or boomers) and the Vessel held a Brand. Mark stole that Brand, ran to the middle, and said, "Come to the middle, guys!"

We ran to the middle and killed the Vessel, just as Stairway to Heaven begun to fill the Dreadnaught. Oryx slammed the top left plate again and called upon the Darkness to converge between his hands, "RAZA ILI CUSHAK! RAZA ILI NAZDUR! RAZA ILI CONTAZ RAK-" We fired at his open chest until he screamed and winced in pain. "AUUUGH! I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU!" He launched hoards of Taken Thrall at us and blasted us with a powerful rapid eye blast. All of us felt the blast, all of us felt the Thrall tearing into our skin, but all of us could still stand, dance, sing, etc. Then we realized that it was the Brand of Immortality!

After Oryx closed his chest and went back to the center, Mala tethered the Thrall and we had a field day. "There's a lady who's sure," I sang, "All that glitters is gold, and she's buying a Stairway to Heaven."

Oryx summoned a Darkness Dimension in the front, Taken Thrall spawned and raced into the dimension, then Anna disappeared from our eyes. "When she gets there she knows," sang the Titan, "if the stores are all closed, with a word she can get what she came for." She fired her sniper at the Shade of Oryx inside.

Mark disappeared then fired at the Shade too, "Oooh ooh ooh oo hoo hoo, and she's buying a Stairway to Heaven."

Ras disappeared, then fired at the Shade as he sang, "There's a sign on the wall, but she wants to be sure, cause you know sometimes words have two meanings."

Mala followed suit, "In a tree by the brook, there's a songbird who sings, 'Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven.'"

The Shade screamed and the Dimension fell apart. Cayde asked, _"Are you- Are you singing?"_

Oryx screamed as he rushed to the back left. The Titans placed their Wards and Ras said, "My turn to run!" and he followed me to my plate. Mark took the back right plate for Ras, then Oryx slammed his fist down, covering the plate in the same black fire. Ras stepped up to run across the incoming platforms, I stepped up to hold the platforms in phase, then Mark stepped on his, then Anna, and finally Shin. Mala was busy dealing with the Ogres as they popped up, then we took care of the Knights. "Ooooooh, it makes me wonder," sang Ras as he ran to the Brand Claimer, "Ooooooh, it makes me wonder." He flew down to grab the Brand from the next Vessel.

Shin killed the Vessel with Xolcryst, "There's a feeling a get when I look to the west, and my spirit is crying for leaving." Everyone went to the middle, ready to shoot at Oryx as he called on the Darkness again. "In my thoughts, I have seen rings of smoke through the trees and the voices of those who stand looking."

Oryx winced, then said, "YOU ARE SINGING THE WRONG SONG! YOU SHOULD BE SINGING ABOUT ME! YOU **WILL** BE SINGING ABOUT ME!" Thrall marched up to us and began scratching.

Mala asked, "What do we do with the Corrupted Light?"

I sang, "Ooooooh, it makes me wonder."

Mala pouted and fired her Shadowshot at the ground, tethering the Thrall. Oryx went back to the front and called forth another Darkness Dimension.

"Ooooooh, it really makes me wonder," sang Shin as she disappeared. She fired at the Shade, following her were Anna, Mark, Ras, and Mala, then they killed the Shade, and everyone resumed their positions.

Oryx went to the top right this time and slammed his fist, "THE ERA OF YOUR PAGAN LIGHT ENDS NOW! THE REIGN OF ORYX, GOD OF THE UNIVERSE, BEGINS TODAY!"

Shin jumped on the slammed plate first, Anna held her place, then Mark jumped on the top left plate, then me, and finally Ras. Shin and I sang, "And it's whispered that soon, if we all call the tune, then the piper will lead us to reason." Mala killed the Ogres, we killed the Knights, Shin grabbed the Brand Claimer and stole the Brand from the new Vessel. "And a new day will dawn for those who stand long, and the forests will echo with laughter!" We met in the middle, Oryx called upon the Darkness, we shot at him, he winced and groaned, "YOU ARE NOTHING BUT A THORN IN MY BACKSIDE!"

As the Thrall scratched again, I said, "Ok, here's the plan: Cayde and his team will fire everything they have at the core when I say so. I'll run next, so Mark will detonate the Corrupted Light at my plate when it's time." Mala tethered and killed the Thrall. Oryx shifted back to the front and called forth another Darkness Dimension. "If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now," sang Ras and Anna as they shot at the Shade, "It's just a spring-clean for the May Queen."

Mala tethered and killed the Thrall. Oryx shifted back to the front and called forth another Darkness Dimension. "If there's a bustle in your hedgerow, don't be alarmed now," sang Ras and Anna as they shot at the Shade, "It's just a spring-clean for the May Queen."

Mark and Mala disappeared, they shot at the Shade while singing, "Yes, there are two paths you can go by, but in the long run there's still time to change the road you're on."

Shin and I were flung into the Darkness Dimension, similar to what we encountered in the Altar of Oryx, right down to the Shade's figure, which was similar to Oryx's original form. The Shade charged and slammed its sword down, but we met it with multiple snipers, causing the Shade to explode and the Dimension to dissolve. "Your head is humming and it won't go," sang Shin, Anna, and I, "In case you don't know, the Piper's calling you to join him." Oryx went to the back-right plate immediately. Everyone got into their positions, Oryx slammed his fist, I jumped up first, became Torn between Dimensions, then Everyone else jumped on their plates in a counter-clockwise manner. "Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow," joined Mark, Mala, Ras, Cayde, and Shiro, "And did you know, Your stairway lies on the whispering wind? Oooh ooh oooh oh!" I ran across the platforms to grab the Brand Claimer, Mala killed her fourth and final set of Ogres, the Knights' deaths followed after that. I stole the brand from the Vessel and killed it with Yuulstrang, then went to the middle. Everyone else converged and shot at Oryx when he called upon the Darkness. The Hive God winced, "YOU CAN NEVER DEFEAT ME! I AM GOD!"

The four plates sprang to life with dark fire, I said, "NOW!" Mark, Shin, Ras, and Anna went to their respective Corrupted Lights. "AND AS WE WIND ON DOWN THE ROAD!" every Guardian and Ghost in the Dreadnaught began to sing, "OUR SHADOWS' TALLER THAN OUR SOULS!" Mala and I fired at Oryx's chest. I said, "FIRE!"

Cayde and his team fired everything that they had at the Shrine, Tomb, and Weapon Core. "THERE WALKS A LADY WE ALL KNOW, WHO SHINES WHITE LIGHT AND WANTS TO SHOW, HOW EVERYTHING STILL TURNS TO GOLD!"

Ras, Anna, and Mala made it back in time to shoot at Oryx. Thrall surrounded Mark, but he shot at Oryx all the same. "AND IF YOU LISTEN VERY HARD, THE TUNE WILL COME TO YOU AT LAST!" The Corrupted Light detonated once, crippling Mark and The Taken King and wiping out the Thrall. The Corrupted Light detonated again, and again, and again. A brilliant white light followed, destroying the cores and mortally wounding Oryx. "WHEN ALL ARE ONE AND ONE IS ALL! TO BE A ROCK AND TO ROLL!"

Oryx fell, then got back up in the front. "YOU WRECKED MY HOME, MY FAMILY, AND MY APOTHEOSIS! I SHALL WRECK YOUR UNIVERSE!" He called upon the Darkness one more time. Shin caught his blast with telekinesis, then directed it back to him. He screamed as his limbs writhed at the vacuum of space, piercing our ears without remorse, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Then he exploded into mere body parts and organs, including a now-dead worm. His arms cracked apart to reveal 4 different weapons: A Hand Cannon, a Scout Rifle, a Pulse Rifle, and an Auto Rifle. The heart liquefied and Ras captured it in two metal rings with Runes around the circumference, taking the frame and loading the Ravenous Heart into it. Shin took the Hand Cannon, Mala grabbed the Scout Rifle, Ras snatched the Auto Rifle to infuse into his new Scout Rifle, and I went for the Pulse Rifle.

"And she's buying a Stairway," sang a weak Mark, "to Heaven."

"MARK!" we shouted as we ran over. The Dreadnaught began to crumble around us. Mark's body was mutilated, "We have to bring him home," I said, "for a proper burial."

The roof collaped around us, Shin shouted, "No! We! Are! NOT!" She tugged me away from Mark's body. Mala took Mark's cloak and replaced her own. The floor cracked beneath our feet, revealing the layers of the decaying Dreadnaught, including a hanger for Hive Fighters. "Come on!" said Shin, "We have found a way out!" She was the first to parkour down the layers into the hanger, followed by me, Anna, Mala, and Ras. Each of us took a Hive Fighter and flew out of the small exits for the ships.

* * *

Shiro witnessed the Dreadnaught crumbling around them, "Welp, time to get out of here!"

"Without Max and his team!?" asked Cayde. The ceiling began to fall, then he said, "Ok, let's go!"

They led the 15 remaining Guardians out of the center of the Dreadnaught, where they saw 5 additional Hive Fighters leaving the exterior.

 _"This is Max Prodigy of Fireteam Omega, we've stowed away in five bony ships. Can you see us?"_

Cayde breathed a sigh of relief, "Yes, we see you, and it's good to see you still alive," then his mood shifted, "but where's Mark?"

Silence on the radio, then, _"Dead, we're returning him for a proper burial."_

"Ok," said the Hunter Vanguard, "This Blade Leader to all Guardians, let's go home and celebrate our victory!" Everyone launched into jump space as the Dreadnaught parts exploded into Saturn's Rings, filling the hole it once created.

* * *

Eris felt a surge of Darkness leave her rock, temporarily. _"My Queen,"_ she said telepathically, _"You are right: Max and Shin were the keys. For now, the whispers are silent again. They have mastered the Sword-Logic and have created a weapon to dissect the Hive. I accepted my fate, I did not fail, nor will I ever. But there is so much more to do: I must dive deep into the Hive Lore and Architecture, I must find Savathun!_

A distant voice in the halls said, "You are under arrest! Surrender and die!"


	57. Rise of the Fifth Reich

RISE OF THE FIFTH REICH

Xylar appeared before Melkor, quivering at the news he was about to give, "M-m-master."

"SPIT IT OUT, XYLAR!" inquired Melkor.

"S-s-sire, oh G-G-God of D-D-D-Darkness, The W-W-Warlock has k-k-killed Oryx!"

Melkor lashed out, destroying his throne, and tearing up everything around him. After he was done, The Dark Lord said, "Anything else!?"

"Th-they also destroyed The D-D-Dreadnaught."

Melkor charged at Xylar, but The Dark Lord simply fizzled through the Vex Overlord, a reminder that he was in a different place: The Timeless Void. Melkor growled, "This place will be the death of me! I must escape!"

Xylar straightened, "Well, the first of the Nine Seals have been broken."

Melkor corrected his posture, "Yes, that is good news! Just eight more to go! And it starts when all hope falls!"

* * *

We flew back to the Tower via Jump-space. Along the way, Rasputin began mumbling to himself about Charlemagne, Mark, and their failures. I asked, "Ras, are you ok?"

Ras quipped, "Why wouldn't I be? I am strong and powerful, just as I was when I faced off the Darkness."

"Dad!" said Malahayahti, "This isn't like you!"

"What do you know about me, Mala!? You haven't seen the Darkness, NONE OF YOU HAVE!"

Cayde interrupted, "Well, pardon me, but I think that we should take some R&R."

Everyone nodded their heads and said, "Yeah, I'm down for that!"

"Bingeing on Netflix, anyone?" asked a Hunter.

"Sure," answered a Titan.

Once we exited Jump-space and entered the City's airspace, the Comms greeted us with, "INTRUDERS BEARING 346 DEGREES FROM TRUE NORTH: STATE YOUR BUSINESS, OR FIRED ON IN THE NAME OF THE SPEAKER."

I answered, "This is Guardian Omega Epsilon 4682. We are coming back after our fight with Oryx."

The Comms registered, "A BIO-SCAN CONFIRMS THAT ALL 22 GUARDIANS ARE FUGITIVES OF THE LAW. ON BEHALF OF SPEAKER ZAVALA AND VICE SPEAKER HIDEO, ALL OF YOU ARE TO BE TERMINATED."

Rasputin dove for the City, fingers on the triggers, ready to fire at the unsuspecting Consensus below. "IF I GO DOWN, YOU'RE COMING WITH ME!"

I dove toward Ras. "Stop it!" I shouted, "You're going to brand us as terrorists!"

22 missiles were fired, each one seeking a specific target. "AS IF WE AREN'T ALREADY TERRORISTS!" He fired at the large domed building known as The Halls of the Consensus, right beneath the Traveler. One of the missiles went straight for Ras, but he maneuvered out of the way, causing it to catch the Consensus instead. The other 21 missiles came for the rest of us. We

The other 21 missiles came for the rest of us. We flew out of the way of some, ramming 12 missiles into each other, but the other 9 hit their targets. Anna dove for the Tower. I shouted, "ANNA! DON'T!" But it was too late. She destroyed the missile launcher and most of the Tower Plaza.

But it was too late. She destroyed the missile launcher and most of the Tower Plaza. "How relevant is our safety when all of us are bound in chains!?" she shouted, "This is our fight! The City must be destroyed!"

Another 22 missiles were fired, then another 22. Mala aimed for Anna, then charged into the air at full speed, ramming Anna's ship and going into Jump-space, warp 1. "Guys," she said, "Where should we go?"

"Somewhere safe!" I said, dodging the missiles, "Go to Mount Cadillac in the Old Colony!"

"Ok," said everyone else, "Will do!" They jumped from the City and vanished. Shin and I targeted Rasputin, then we charged, preparing to jump. Another 22 missiles were fired. "NOW!" I said, and we jumped, dragging Rasputin by the wings of his ship.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he shouted, "I WAS SO CLOSE!"

"You need to explain why you decided to attack the City!" shouted Shin.

Ras growled, "I WANTED VENGEANCE! I WANTED TO WATCH THE CITY BURN!"

Shin and I nodded to each other, and we shot down the wings of Ras's ship at Point Blank range.

Ras fell out of Jump-space, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooo..." The last thing we heard was white noise, then silence.

The gravity of Ras's death hit me just as we exited Jump-space and arrived at Mount Cadillac. Mala asked, "Where's my dad?"

Shin left the cockpit of her ship and said, "Gone, he didn't make it."

"But I heard ships firing, did you do this?"

I sighed heavily as I left my cockpit, "He wanted to burn the City."

Shiro and Cayde looked confused, "He was almost ready to destroy our home?"

"Why?" cried the Sub-mind.

"I don't know," answered Shin.

Malahayahti wept into Shin's arms, "Why did he fall?"

"I wish I knew, Mala. I wish I knew."

* * *

Zavala stood at his new post as Speaker, The Consensus burning within his view. Hideo approached Zavala, "Sir, the missiles have claimed 9 criminals."

"Good. Were Max Prodigy and his Fireteam among them?" inquired the new Speaker.

"No, sir. They warped themselves out of range," then the Vice Speaker asked, "Just out of curiosity, why do you care?"

"Because," said a voice from behind, "Max Prodigy and his Fireteam are terrorists from another age." A Titan decked out in an ominous shade of greyish-green stood at the entrance to the Speaker's office. On his shoulders, helmet, and chest plate were the symbols of green fists, the insignia of an old faction known as the Concordat.

"And you are?" asked Hideo.

"My name is Lysander, and your City is now mine!"


	58. The Before

THE BEFORE

The first thing that I noticed was that it was still dark on Mount Cadillac. "Oh!" I realized, "Guys! I need flour, eggs, milk, vanilla extract, a mixing bowl, a pan, and a propane stove!"

"What the Hellmouth for!?" they asked.

"Because I'm making breakfast before the sunrise!"

Shin and Anna asked, "So why here?"

Before I could answer, A Hunter shouted from his ship, "FLOUR AND MILK!"

A Titan shouted from theirs, "EGGS AND BOWL!"

A Warlock shouted from her ship, "PAN AND STOVE!"

"OK!" I answered, "BRING THEM BACK HERE!" As they sprinted back to our picnic table, I explained, "Now, Mount Cadillac is one of the first peaks on the East Coast to get an early sunrise. People from around the world would gather at the summit to watch it," I led everyone to a clearing, no trees in sight, no city lights below us, just us and the night. "I came here when I was a teen, before the dark times," I said as I mixed the eggs and the milk, "Now where's the vanilla?"

Everyone's eyes turned to Cayde-6. "What?" he asked.

"Cayde," I said with an outstretched hand, "Vanilla extract, please?"

"I was saving it for a Shot!"

Shiro ripped the bottle of extract from Cayde's pocket and gave it to me. "Last time I checked, we Exos can't eat or drink," he said.

"Thanks, Shiro!" and I poured a quarter of the extract into the mixing bowl with the milk and eggs. "We're going to need a bigger bowl!" I said in a Marcus Brody voice.

Mala ran around the peak looking for a large enough rock to make into a bowl. When she did, Mala brought it back to Anna and they began carving out the inside to be a bowl large enough for 13 hungry Guardians, minus 4 or 5 Exos. They shouted, "DONE!" as soon as they sanded and washed the inside until it was smooth and clean. Once they gently placed it on the table, another Hunter poured their mixture of Tapioca and Millet Flour into the new bowl, and I poured the now-mixed milk, eggs, and vanilla, mixing them into a batter.

Shin lit the propane stove and said, "How much longer until we eat? The sun's about to rise!"

I looked at the sky, crimson, almost ready to dawn. When it was ready, I pulled out a scoop from my belt, took a nice wad of batter, and plopped it onto the pan, cooking one side for a while, then flipping it, revealing a golden surface. "Now," I say with some confidence, "Who wants the first pancake?"

Cayde said, "OOH! ME ME ME!"

Shiro laughed, "We're Exos, Cayde. How can we eat food, let alone digest it?"

"Amanda installed a stomach yesterday."

"Oh," said the Vanguard Scout sarcastically, "Amanda. Riiiight."

Shin grabbed the pancake before Cayde could take it, then ate it from her plate with just a fork. "What?" she asked with a mouth full, "I'm hungry."

I flipped pancakes left and right, making sure that the batter was still fresh. Shiro pulled out a bottle and placed it on the table. I asked, "Is that what I think it is?"

"I don't know," he said, "I just harvest this stuff from trees in the northeastern parts of the Old Colony, then boil it down over time. I call it 'Sugary Moonshine'."

I tasted it with my own pancake. "Shiro, you just made Maple Syrup!" then I shouted to the others, "Hey guys! Come try Shiro's own Maple Syrup!"

Soon enough, everyone was tasting that brown, sticky syrup on their pancakes. "Delicious!" said a Titan.

"Ambrosial!" announced a Warlock, "How can I make this stuff?!"

Most of the Hunters were licking their plates, "Yummy! We need more!"

The sky was bright red when we finished, ready for the Sun to pop up. "Now," said Shin, "We'd like to know what happened."

"What do you mean?" I said as I quickly stuffed the leftovers into a resealable bag, "We killed Oryx."

"I mean in The Before. You're the only one alive that came from this time period. All of us want to know what happened."

Everyone nodded, "Yeah, man. Tell us what happened."

"Ok," I said, sitting on the picnic table, "It all started a long time ago..."

* * *

 _It was 2016. Fascism was rising again, 71 years after its initial defeat in 1945. It had selected Donald Drumpf to be its champion. Drumpf was an odious and idiotic oaf, but he gained many supporters through his MAGA campaign. The Republicans only had clowns competing against their main candidate, and the Democrats ousted their strongest contender, Bernie Sanders, in favor of a billionaire establishment. Nevertheless, I wanted to make sure that Drumpf and Fascism would never rise again, so I voted for Hillary Clinton. I was so certain that she would win because Donald Drumpf had a high disapproval rating. My family and I watched the results roll in, all of us praying that Donald Drumpf would lose._

 _But then the impossible happened: he won._

 _My family decided that we should escape to Canada before the authorities closed in. So we moved out, right before Inauguration Day. We moved to Niagara Falls for a while but decided to keep moving to Toronto. It was there that we met some old friends: Isabella Sinclaire, Veronica Smith, Jared and Erik Larson. For a while, we were inseparable, cracking jokes, finding full-time jobs, and just relaxing. It was a paradise._

 _That is until Drumpf attacked the city. He ordered all of the aircraft in the area to bomb Toronto until the only thing that remained were ashes. That was 4 years after his election, and that was the same year that he dismantled Congress and swung the Supreme Court to the far-right. That was the year 2020, the year when Drumpf became Emperor, and the United States was killed off and replaced by the Fascist States of America._

 _Justin Trudeau ordered for a raid team to enter America, disable the nuclear launch sites, and exit completely undetected. We were the first people to volunteer. We were Fireteam Alpha._

 _Our mission was simple: prevent World War 3, postpone it at the very least. I added one more objective: Assassinate the Emperor._

 _It took us 3 months of camping and stealthily maneuvering to reach the capital. Jared was the sniper, finger on the trigger, ready for the kill. Bella and Veronica were to remove the guards from their posts, putting security on the rise in case if Mike Pence took over. Mark handled the cameras and could stop the nuclear missiles, and Erik was the demolitions expert. I was stationed in an abandoned apartment, directing the team to their next objective._

 _"Are we all set?" I asked._

 _Everyone said, "Yep. Ready to go."_

 _Jared lined up his shot, Mark knocked out the cameras and passed the feeds over to me. Erik began lining the White House basement with explosives. Veronica and Bella locked and loaded their pistols, and infiltrated on my mark, killing or incapacitating all of the guards. Drumpf began to move, so Jared shot him through the skull. Everything went well, until Bella discovered the body of 'Donald Drumpf'. She shouted, "Decoy! Decoy!" into the comms._

 _I assessed the situation, then said, "Forget the Emperor, Light up the House!"_

 _Erik shouted, "I can't," amidst the gunfire, "Too many guards!" Then there was a loud BANG! "Oh, shit! Mark's dead! Abort the mission, Max! Abor-" BANG!_

 _That's when I saw the Lincoln Memorial explode. "Abort, Jared! Abort!"_

 _"I'm sorry, Max. I can't." BANG!_

 _Everyone else got the message, and we were out of there. I stole a hotwired car and we drove away as fast as we could, not paying attention to the stop lights, but swerving to avoid pedestrians until we made it out of the capital. Once we found a safe place to hide, we made ourselves some shelter and dinner, and we camped out for the night._

 _I thought we were alone at the campsite, but somehow Erik followed us there. I was just washing some dishes when I heard, "You know, you should be careful as to who you idolize."_

 _I turned around, shocked, "Erik? but how?"_

 _He lifted a gun, I dodged out of the way, fighting against his strength. He struck me down with a punch, but I tripped him, grabbed his gun, then fired 3 bullets into his skull. Veronica rushed out of the tent with a gun in her hand. I saw Bella's blood and understood, but before she could fire anything, I unloaded three bullets into her as well. That's when I heard the soldiers storming the camp. I had just enough time to pack up my stuff and row myself to safety, following the river to the next safe spot, and moving at night until I made it back to Canada._

 _4 years later, I was one of the top generals for the Allied World. It was our fourth year into World War 3 with no end in sight. I protested against their decision, "Billions will die. Do you want to be responsible for genocide?"_

 _But they said, "The Annihilation Bomb was the only way to claim victory! Launch it!" In the end, I regrettably turned the launch key, and fired the missile at the capital of the Fascist States, completely obliterating it. The rest of the country fell into another civil war without a clear winner. Those who were left either starved to death or resulted to cannibalism. The leaders later said, "It had to be done! America was a dying country!"_

 _Then in 2026, our final job was to raid Vladimir Putin's palace, assassinate him, and liberate Russia. It was a simple smash and grab, for a while. Before I could lay a finger on him, his new girlfriend surprised me from behind. Just as they were about to leave, I coughed, "He's leaving! Light it up!" Then the room turned white hot, and my sight faded to black._

* * *

"...that is until I was resurrected," I finished. Everyone looked at me with shock, awe, and terror. "I know," I continued, "I'm not a saint. But, I tried to make things better."

"So, how do we survive against the City?"

When the sun was about to rise, Anna said, "Oh! Look at that!" Everyone turned their eyes to the horizon and to the rising red Sun. As it rose higher and higher into the sky, the Sun glowed brighter and brighter, until it became a glowing yellow ball. The other Guardians diverted their attention to the Sun before it could blind them.

Shin sat down next to me, "Max, I want you to do one thing for me."

"What is that?" I asked.

She laced our fingers together, pressed her lips to my ear, and whispered, "Let it go. Fascism is dead and buried in the past, where it belongs. If you worry about it too much, you could become the one that brings it back," she turned my body to be parallel with hers, then wrapped her arms around me, "I don't want to lose you."

I whimpered into her shoulder, "What have I become? A monster?"

"No, Max," she squeezed me tighter, "You're not a monster. You're just worried. I'd like you to stop," she kissed me on the last note, making sure that all of my fears were laid to rest.

I gave in, "I love you, Shin."

"I love you too, Max."

Shiro said, "If you two are done, we need to get moving! The City's forces will be here any minute!"

I broke away from Shin, "Then where do we go?"

He simply said, "I know of a place, but it's overrun by Fallen."

* * *

Lord Saladin stood before a recent breach in the Cosmodrome Wall, letting his brown skin experience the frigid cold air at night. Helmet in his left hand and tucked to his side, he tossed his torch in his right hand into the fire. His three wolves that he selected for this mission growled at the breach. The Last Iron Lord placed his helmet on his head and brought forth a flaming battle axe in his hands.

From the breach emerged thousands of new Dregs, all of them augmented down to the bone by a crimson nanomite swarm, causing their skin to become ash white, protected by obsidian black plates. "YOU WANT YOUR FRIENDSSSSSSSSSS BACK? COME AND GET THEM!" they cried in unison.

"Shiro," he said into his comms, "Bring the Guardians to Felwinter Peak, it's time!" Then Lord Saladin charged towards the Fallen, ready to take them and their new god down.


	59. The Peak of Felwinter

THE PEAK OF FELWINTER

Nightingale gave Mala, Shin and me a briefing of the current situation, "The House of Devils is back; this time they're on a mission. The SABER that they launched into the Warmind's bunker uncovered a classified folder amongst the WARSAT codes. At first, the Tower wasn't concerned with the Devils at all. But given the recent events that happened, Zavala has ordered all Tower Guardians to begin patrolling a sector that has been dark for centuries. Whatever was in that bunker has both Zavala and the Fallen interested."

Shin asked, "So, how does Saladin fit into this?"

"I've intercepted some rumors in the Tower," announced Nightingale, "Apparently Lord Saladin has left his post in the Iron Banner to take charge of the matter personally."

"Ok," said Mala, "Let's go there!"

"But instead of going straight to the Cosmodrome, Saladin wants us to retake an observatory in the mountains."

"And those mountains are crawling with Fallen," I concluded.

"Make haste!" said Saladin over the comm channel, "If the Fallen retake Vostok Observatory, we could lose our only advantage against them and the City."

"They won't," I ships dropped us at the base of the mountain trail. Mala locked and loaded her Doom of

Our ships dropped us at the base of the mountain trail. Mala locked and loaded her Doom of Chelchis, I readied my Smite of Merain, and Shin infused her Zaouli's Bane into her Last Word, corrupting it into the First Curse. She drew her Hawkmoon, loaded both Hand Cannons, and said, "Alright! Let's go steal a mountain!"

I grinned, "I knew that you'd like Leverage!" We ran up the mountain trail to a gondola dock surrounded by Fallen; after we killed them, we powered up, entered, and activated the gondola.

"Woah!" Nightingale remarked, "This gondola hasn't been active for a century!"

The gondola initially lurched, then began to move steadily along the cables leading to the peak. Abruptly, Fallen Vandals began sniping at us, while Fallen Skiffs fired everything at the gondola. We returned fire at the Fallen; Nightingale, Jared, and Alex repaired and overrode the control panel to send us to the observatory. The Skiffs fired again, blasting one of the sides of the gondola. We lost our balance and fell out of the side, sliding down a small slope. Just as we reached level ground, the broken gondola tumbled down the same slope, forcing us to move to either side; Shin and I went to the right, while Mala took the left.

"I never liked that small metal box anyway," said the Sub-mind. She turned her head to a glowing red and black fragment, snatched it, then she followed us up another mountain trail leading to the peak. Along the way, we killed some more Fallen on the trail and inside some old buildings in an old village at the peak. "Keep moving!" said Saladin as we hiked up the trail, "We need to protect the Iron Temple and its archives from the Fallen!"

"Wait," said Shin, "Iron Temple? Like Iron Banner? Like the Iron Lords?"

"Stay focused! We'll sort out this out later!"

When we reached the ancient village, we heard some noises that sounded like a Servitor. Sure enough, when we turned around the corner, there was a giant Servitor floating above a gathering of Dregs.

I shouted, "Servitor!" and tried to take it down, but it teleported away.

Shin got a good look at the Servitor before it teleported, "Sepiks Prime? But he's supposed to be dead!"

Mala killed the Dregs and said, "There was something else about him, it wasn't Fallen or Ether, but it was regenerating!"

"DID YOU JUST SAY, 'IT'S REGENERATING'!?" asked Saladin.

"YES!" we shouted.

"KILL SEPIKS! KILL IT OFF, NOW!"

We rushed to the other end of the village, where two iron doors opened to a watchtower and a wooden bridge, leading to the other end of the peak.

This peak was decorated with stone paths and symbols of two gauntlets with a battle axe. A massive Temple was carved into the rock and sitting at the top of a flight of stone stairs that surrounded the front half of the peak. The rest of the peak acted like its courtyard. Sepiks began firing at the Temple's doors with crimson bolts of plasma. We began firing at the Servitor until he disappeared. As we walked toward the Temple's doors, two Vandals immediately ambushed us

As we walked toward the Temple's doors, two Vandals immediately ambushed us. Saladin came to our rescue as he aimed his Machine Gun at the Vandals' heads and pulled the trigger twice. "Even old wolves still bite," he commented, "Shiro, Cayde, what's your status?"

"Circling the perimeter," answered the Vanguard Scout, "Ready to drop off a large package."

"How large?" we asked.

"All of the Warlock sects from the Tower, and a few Hunters and Titans as well."

"Well done!" said Saladin, "The Iron Temple is secure and we have backup on the way."

Sepiks appeared again and laughed, "ASSSSSSSS IF VICTORY COMESSSSSSSSSS EASSSSSSSSSSILY!" Then he vanished again.

Saladin shouted into the comms, "SHIRO! CAN YOU FIND SEPIKS!?"

"I just picked up," he was about to say, but then shifted to, "Wait! Multiple impacts near the wall at Sector 17!"

"They're attacking the Sensor Grid in the Plaguelands!" declared the Iron Lord, "They know where SIVA is!" Then he turned to us, "Go to the Cosmodrome immediately! Make sure that they haven't unearthed SIVA!"

* * *

Sepiks floated in his hideout, surrounded by his most devout followers. A metallically-altered and bald Vosik approached the Prime Servitor, both covered in crimson swarms of nanites. "Did you dessssssssstroy Felwinter Peak?" asked Vosik, the Archpriest.

"No," answered Sepiks, "The Guardianssssssssssss were there. Ssssssssshin wassssssssss there, but ssssssssshe wassssssssss different."

"Different? How?"

"Sssssssshe'sssssssss a Warlock, not a Hunter anymore. Powerful and dangeroussssssssss."

Vosik sighed, "No matter, we have attacked the sssssssensssssssor grid and laid a trap. Thossssssssse pessssssssssky Guardianssssssssssss won't know what killed them!"


	60. Ruptured Quarantine

RUPTURED QUARANTINE

Zavala glanced at the orders that Lysander tossed in front of him. "You want me to send Guardians into a dark sector of Cosmodrome known as the Plaguelands?"

Lysander nodded, "That's the gist of it. Now if we want to spread the City's control over the Solar System, then we're going to need a weapon that can crush the Reef with one stroke. Since Max destroyed the Dreadnaught, we're going to need something else."

Zavala was confused, "How is destroying the Dreadnaught a bad thing?"

Lysander struck Zavala, "DON'T QUESTION MY METHODS!"

Zavala whimpered, "Yes, Mr. Speaker."

"Good! Now give the order!"

Zavala turned on every loudspeaker in the City and in the Tower and spoke through the microphone, "Attention subjects, this is Speaker Zavala. I have an important announcement to make. This will be my most important announcement yet since I wrote it. As of today, all Guardians loyal to my cause are to report to the Tower Hangar immediately. Today, we have been given a mission: to dive into the Plaguelands and find an energy source known as SIVA. Many of you will not see your families again, so I urge you to take 30 seconds to say goodbye, as you will not be coming back. Hunters, since you have no loyalties to anyone, you are required to report now. Titans, I'll give some of you a minute, but then again you are also to report immediately, so chop-chop! To everyone else, I'm cutting you off of your wages, and you are not to leave the City at all. Tax collectors will come around for some cash, you are required to give them your wallets. As for me, I'm heading off to the golf course! It should be a fun time because I'm going to be there! And we might declare war on the Reef next week if everything goes well. Until then, Hail Zavala!"

Some of the people raised their right hands and shouted, "HAIL ZAVALA!" Others were confused, but then shrugged it off and went back to their slave jobs.

* * *

Nightingale said, "Saladin, you mentioned SIVA before we left, but I can't find a reference to SIVA anywhere in the pirated Tower archives or the Ishtar archives."

"That's because I went to great lengths to seal it away from prying eyes like Zavala's," said Saladin, "The records are in the Iron Temple archives."

"Ok, but if the Fallen and the Tower know about SIVA, then why can't we?"

"In due time, you will learn; right now you need to find Sepiks before the Fallen can fully recover SIVA."

"While you're there," interrupted Shiro, "We need you to repair the Sensor Grid so that we know the extent of the corruption."

"Ok, will do." Our ships dropped us off outside of the Cosmodrome. The sky was almost navy blue, the whole Cosmodrome was covered in snow, some parts were encased in ice or had icicles hanging from the edges. Alex asked, "Ok, which is more threatening? A giant ketch to our right, or a huge hole in the Cosmodrome wall to our left?"

"Both," we said, "Definitely both."

Mala opened up Nightingale's back and said, "Hold still, I want to test something."

"Look," said the Ghost, "I don't mind you looking at my circuitry, but you still need my permission."

"Sorry. May I tinker with your circuitry?"

Nightingale blushed, "Yes."

"Just as a note, I don't get turned on by this, or by anything for that matter."

"I know, but I like to give consent when someone tries to look at my insides, especially to a cute woman such as yourself."

Mala half-grinned, "Thanks, but no thanks," then infused a bit of her Exo suit's material and a zipped file of herself with a Mote of Light and said, "That should just about do it!"

"Do what?" I asked.

Mala took the First Curse from Shin and shot herself in the head. "MALA!" we shouted.

Nightingale expanded into a blue orb and said, "Guardian Down!"

I crouched down to Mala and closed her eyes. Just as I grabbed Nightingale to pull myself up, the Ghost shot a beam at the ground, creating a new Malahayahti, identical to her previous body. Both Shin and I were confused, "Umm, what just happened?"

The sub-mind grinned, "You revived me, that's what!"

"But how?"

"Pull out your Ghosts and hand them to me."

Jared and Alex objected, "Now hold on-" But it was too late. Before Mala dug around inside the Ghosts, she asked, "Can I see your circuitry?"

"Um, sure. I don't see why."

Mala fiddled with the circuitry in both Alex and Jared, then she asked us for our arms, "I need to draw some blood."

"Why?" I asked.

"This won't hurt a bit," She stabbed my arm with a needle and drew some of my red blood.

"YOW!" I winced.

"I lied," then she did the same with Shin, using a different needle.

"OUCH!" she screamed.

"I know you two hate needles, but it had to be done," Mala infused our blood and 2 Motes into our respective Ghosts, "Now, let's find us a sensor grid!"

We ran through the doorway leading to the inner structure of the wall. However, once we reached the giant room where I found my first weapon, I noticed that roof was removed not by snow, ice, or nature, but rather by plasma cutters. Snow did cover the floors that are now shadowed by an open roof. Following this new path to the next room, we asked, "What would the Fallen want with pieces of a wall?"

"Beats me," answered Shiro.

We ran through the next room, to an old turbine, which led to The Divide. Shin almost passed out. "House of Wolves," she whispered, "They tried to take the Houses of Devils and Kings."

"Ok," said Shiro, "But this is a SIVA crisis. We should-"

"She's having a flashback!" I said, "Give her a moment." I guided Shin as she fell to the ground, making sure that she didn't fracture her skull or freeze to death.

Shin closed her eyes and whispered, "Understood, Petra. We'll kill the Silent Fangs."

"Silent Fangs?" asked Shiro.

"DIE FANGS!" she sleepwalked, firing her gun at thin air. When she came to, Shin asked, "What happened? Did I hurt someone?"

"No," I guessed, "You're just having an active flashback."

Shin nodded, "Ok, I just wanted to make sure."

"You're fine."

Mala ran over to a large blossom of red tentacles and jet black pyramids, "And this is SIVA?"

"Yes," answered Saladin, "It could be anything we wanted it to be, starships or cities, the possibilities were endless, at least according to Felwinter."

"Strange," said Mala, "It's like I've seen this before."

"How so?" asked Shin.

"I don't know, I just have."

A small Hive tombship crashed into the snow on an opposite corner of the Divide. Jared was puzzled, "Hive? Here in the Plaguelands?"

"The Hive usually keep to the dark," said the Iron Lord, "Especially when they have lost one of their gods."

"Let alone two," commented Shiro.

"So, something is driving them out into the open!" I realized.

"My money's on SIVA," Cayde joked over the comms.

We sighed and summoned our Sparrows and rode all the way into the Rocketyard, also covered in snow. Hive Acolytes and Wizards roamed in small numbers. "I just lost the sensor grid!" declared Shiro, "See if you can fix it and get it back online."

"We'll try," I said. Our Ghosts directed us to a large hole in the side of the Rocketyard, leading to a room with a vertical cluster of blank monitors, some of which were corrupted by SIVA. Jared took one look at it and said, "Good luck with that, Shiro. It's permanently damaged!"

"Great," said the scout sarcastically, "Just great."

"Wait! I found something!" said the Ghost, "Databanks from the sensor grid, still intact, would that be enough to know what the Fallen are doing with SIVA?"

"Yes! Grab it and get out of there!"

A low hum shifted through the air. I asked, "Guys, do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" they said.

The hum steadily grew into a loud whine as the monitors glowed red, complete with a diamond, one of its sides was open like a door, and another side reinforced by an identical copy. I groaned, "UUUUUGGGGGGHHHHHH! KILL THAT NOISE! KILL IT!"

Fallen Vandals and Dregs ambushed us. These came equipped with obsidian-colored armor and crimson wires infused into their skin, wielding SIVA-enhanced weaponry. Shin and Mala sprang into action, tossing a grenade and killing these Fallen with headshots, one of which spawned a red orb that followed the attacker. Another wave of Vandals and Dregs came out of nowhere, this time being led by a Captain with 4 metal horns. Mala tethered the Captain and the Dregs, then shouted, "MAX!"

I groaned as I unsheathed Yuulstrang, dragged myself over to the Captain, and let loose a whirlwind of Void energy on the Captain and the Dregs. The Vandals retreated into another hole, leading away from the Rocketyard. The noise died down and I stood up straight. Shin asked, "What the Hellmouth did you hear?"

"I'll explain later," I said, "Jared, did you get the databanks?"

"Yeah," he answered, "But they were booby-trapped!"

"Would explain the ambush," said Shiro.

"And what kind of Fallen would go to such lengths to enhance themselves!?" asked Mala.

"Splicers!" answered Shin, "They're called Splicers."

"What do they do?" I asked.

"Remember Sepiks and The SABER? They're the ones who made them!"

"Ohhh," I realized.

"Yeah, and as of today, they've just earned a new title: Bio-hackers."

"It's worse than I feared," said Saladin over the comms, "The Splicers are using SIVA to twist these lands and themselves."

"Ok," I said, "There must be some way we can-"

Unexpectedly, another trio of Guardians came, decked out in green armor. "We found the fugitives," said a Titan.

"Thank Lysander for that," replied another as they surrounded us.

The Hunter said, "Get these guys cuffed. Zavala wants a public execution."

I aimed the Smite at the Hunter and pulled the trigger. Shin slashed at the Titan guarding her. The other Titan shouted, "NEED BACKUP! NEED BA-" before Mala sent a bolt of lightning from Eirfaeril, which she pulled off of Mark before leaving the Dreadnaught.

The radio replied, "Understood, help is on the way."

We ran through the other hole to a corridor leading to Foundry 113, which was a massive junkyard reorganized into a massive project of sorts with a giant orb sitting at an angle in the front. "So THAT'S what the scrap metal is for!" I said, "To build...whatever that thing is!"

"I don't think it would be that simple," said Shin, "The Splicers would definitely build a masterpiece to show off their power, but I've got a feeling that they would do something else with SIVA."

"Like armor and weapons?" asked Shiro.

"Probably, although I-" Then her knees buckled, "Ugh! The Kings! Wolves are trying to take the House of Kings!" I caught her before she fell, then she closed her eyes and whispered, "Must stop- Wait, are they negotiating? KILL THEM ALL!" She sprang into action again, firing her Hawkmoon in every direction before opening her eyes. Then she saw my dead body. "OH NO! MAX!" She squeezed my body tightly and said, "I'm sorry."

She accidentally touched my Ghost, then Jared shot a blue beam of light and I rematerialized in front of her, "It's okay, you're fine," I reassured.

"I'm sorry, I-"

"I know, you were reliving another memory."

She stood and dropped my corpse, "But I killed you!"

"And I forgive you," I gave her a quick hug, "You're going to be alright, but we have to pull ourselves through this."

Mala said, "Move now, hug later!" and we rushed to the other corner of the Foundry.

After we ran through another corridor with plasma-cut metal clearing a path, into the Lords' Watch. The Watch was a long road that had a decaying cliff to our right and an array of OKB-1 buildings to our left, some of which were cut into by, you guessed it, plasma cutters. (In fact, said Plasma Cutters are actually autonomous.) Behind us, the road led to a huge oil tanker known as the Giant's Husk, and in front of us, after a few yards, the road cut through Bunker Triglav, dividing it into a nuclear missile silo on its left and a giant weapons hangar (including 3 very large guns enhanced by SIVA) on its right.

Upon entering the Lords' Watch, we heard 3 loud VROUM's coming from the 3 SIVA guns. "Those guns were destroyed during the Collapse!" exclaimed Cayde.

Shiro followed with, "How did the Splicers repair those things!?"

"SIVA, that's how!" answered Saladin.

"So they treat SIVA like Duct Tape?" I asked.

Saladin, Shiro, and Cayde asked with confusion, "What's Duct Tape?"

"The most versatile thing on the planet, until SIVA, apparently."

Saladin commanded, "We'll talk about this after those guns are destroyed, again!"

"Ok, then!" We summoned our Sparrows and rode all the way to weapons hangar of Bunker Triglav. There, we were informed of two SIVA sprouts hiding in the open hangar, guarded by Splicer Vandals, Shanks, and Dregs. After we cleaned up the hangar, we jumped up to a passageway leading to the gun platform.

The outdoor platform held a SIVA gun on the left, right, and center decks. Each gun was controlled by a SIVA sprout that rested inside the deck, and on the outside, there were blue Fallen 'Rocket Launchers' on each side of the deck, each one slimmer than our variants and humming with electricity. The Splicers on the platform turned their guns on us once we stepped into their territory. "Alright then," said Mala, "Let's take out some zombie guns!"

Shin ran for the middle, grabbing the first Launcher, and fired at the SIVA sprout, destroying it and demolishing its respective gun with one shot. "Guys!" she said, "These things are called Shock Cannons!"

I picked one up on the left side and did the same thing to the left gun; Mala followed suit. "Great job demolishing those SIVA guns!" said Shiro, "Hawks, you are clear to leave Vostok!"

Hawk leader said over the comms, "Alright, men! Let's secure the Plaguelands!"

Mala found another SIVA fragment off to the side and picked it up, just before a Splicer Skiff sent a SIVA Walker Tank to the platform. The Tank was rounded, had six armored legs, a protected induction core, and 3 different turrets at its disposal. As soon as it opened up, Shin shouted, "AIM FOR THE LEGS!" and we fired at one of the front ones. The leg buckled, exposing the core. Normally, it would be tough to take down a Walker, but since we had Shock Cannons, the Tank went down easily. Just then, 3 more Tanks were delivered, this time with more SIVA than usual. We replaced our empty Cannons with fresh ones, but the Tanks locked on to us. As we ducked into one of the decks, the Tanks began directing the SIVA corruption towards the guns. Hawk leader shouted, "GET OUT OF THERE! WE'RE BOMBING THAT PLATFORM TO SMITHERINES!"

We ran back the way we came, then we heard a **BOOOOM!** coming from the hangar. "Platform destroyed, Plaguelands open for patrol. Well done, Max," reported Hawk leader.

Saladin sighed, "Centuries have passed, and yet I've learned nothing, at least nothing new," then he said to Hawk leader, "How fast can you set up patrol beacons?"

"Fairly quickly," he answered, "But keep in mind that the Tower can also access the Plaguelands now."

"Then do your best," ordered the Iron Lord calmly, "As for Fireteam Omega, I need to speak with them back at the Temple; We need to teach them about the Iron Lords."

* * *

Vosik and Kovik knelt before Aksis in the darkened Perfection Complex. Although the Archon Prime was concealed by darkness, the Archpriest and the Splicer Priest were required to bow. "I've reccccccccccently heard that Bunker Triglav wassssssssssssssss under attack. How issssssssssssss thissssssssssss possssssssssible?" he asked.

"Mighty Aksssssssisssssssss," said Vosik, "The Guardianssssssssssss have-"

"SSSSSSSSSSSSSSTOP!" commanded Aksis, "SSSSSSSSINCCCCCCCCE WE CANNOT HOLD THEM BACK, WE WILL /CONSSSSSSSSSSSSUME ENHANCCCCCCCCCE REPLICATE/ EVERYTHING IN THE COSSSSSSSSSMODROME!"

"Leave it to me," said Kovik, "But I need sssssssspecccccccial equipment for the Hive." More SIVA nanites broke away from the tentacles on the walls and charged at Kovik, turning his head and two of his arms into obsidian pyramids, and fusing his Scorch Cannon to his right arm. Kovik grinned with a pixelated smile and said in an electronic voice, "Thank you, my liege," then he warped out of the Complex, leaving Vosik and Aksis alone.

"Vossssssssik," said the Archon Prime, now revealed to the Archpriest, "My enhancccccccccccementsssssssssssssss are not enough to make me a Kell, let alone a god among the Elikssssssssssni. I need more metal," he paused for emphasis, "and more legsssssssssss!"

"I'll ssssssssee to it that the sssssssssmeltersssssssss in the Archon'sssssssssss Keep and Forge are burning hot and increasssssssssssssing our materialsssssssssssss exxxxxxxxxxxxxxxponentttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiially."


	61. The Lords of Iron

THE LORDS OF IRON

We came back to the Felwinter Peak to find the Iron Temple doors opened. The first thing that we notice walking into the temple was a tall square pillar standing a few meters ahead of us and separating the entrance and the Iron Shrine. Standing at the pillar was a healthy, elderly, blue lady. "Greetings, Guardians. I'm Tyra Karn, the Prime Cryptarch, Historian extraordinaire, and one of the surviving experts on SIVA."

"So, you're an Iron Lady?" asked Mala.

"No, I was their Cryptarch and guide through the Plaguelands. It seems like Destiny has brought us to this place, side by side against the Ironsbane."

"Are you nicer than Rahool?" I asked.

Tyra laughed, "Yes, I am. Aside from decoding engrams, I also sell Iron Lords' and Ladies' memories. But in order to get them, you need to prove yourself in the Plaguelands to be deemed worthy of their talents."

"Ok then," said Shin, "We're up for the challenge!"

"Sounds good! But first, Saladin wants to see you in the Shrine."

"Shrine?" we asked.

"A dedication to his friends who were killed by SIVA in the Replication Chamber. All 8 of the statues are there, dedications to Jolder, Skorri, Radegast, Perun, Silimar, Gheleon, and Fel-Timur."

"You mean Felwinter and Timur?" inquired Mala.

"Yes, but everyone shipped them together. Two Warlocks, one bold but brash, the other calm and collected, each one balancing and strengthening the other. A match made by the Traveler, I'd say."

I giggled, "Who else did you ship?"

Shin and Mala were confused, "What's a ship?"

"It's short for relationship," explained Tyra, "and it's typically unofficial. In fact, you three make an adorable ship!"

Shin crept away from the Cryptarch and said, "Ok, I'm going to go see Saladin."

Mala and I followed with, "Same."

"Ok, but please don't be a stranger, Pro-phur-yahti."

Shin whispered, "She did NOT just ship us!"

I whispered back, "Yep, she did."

Mala silently slapped her head with her palm, "Does she know that I'm AroAce!?" her voice echoed inside the Shrine.

"Probably not," I whispered.

"I'm glad that you came back," said Saladin, "It's time that you learned about the Iron Lords and the Iron Wolves."

* * *

 _In the early days of the Dark Age, there were no Guardians or Iron Lords. There were Ghosts, but the bodies that they raised from the dead were gifted with power, but not wisdom. These warriors of 'Light' were called Warlords. The first Warlord that was raised forced everyone into a city that he ruled with a tyrannical grip. This Warlord would set out not to protect the city, but to increase his own power. Everyone at the time knew him as Rezyl Azzir, The Wretched Tyrant. The second Warlord was his right-hand, a Hunter named Elvira. Azzir and Elvira began terrorizing anyone who didn't conform to their ways or were different from their 'master race.'_

 _But the third person resurrected wasn't a Warlord; she was a Warlock and a very wise one at that. She began collecting Ghosts that would find other warriors who were filled with wisdom. Her name was Skorri, and the first wise warriors that were chosen by her became her fellow Iron Lords. The ones who came after became the Iron Wolves. We started liberating the people that were enslaved by Azzir and his rule, but we were also met with force._

 _Azzir began raising his own Warlords, taking over Clovis Bray Laboratories and the Ishtar Academy, and pushing us out of Mars and Venus. We fighting a losing battle, a losing war. That's when Felwinter came in._

 _He was an Exo Warlock who began tracking down the Warlords and killing them, brutally. Timur recognized Felwinter's talents and inducted him as one of the Lords. With Felwinter, we were hunting down every Warlord, either to recruit them as Wolves or to kill them off. He even gave us Felwinter Peak as a place of refuge and planning our next move. The tables were turned on Azzir and Elvira, and they were soon cornered at Clovis Bray. Azzir barely escaped, but Elvira was killed inside the laboratories. That's when Timur found SIVA and began studying it excessively, usually with Felwinter over his shoulder, lovingly._

 _When Timur tracked it to Sector 17 of the Cosmodrome, we thought that it would be ours for the taking, until Rasputin responded. As soon as we entered Sector 17, Rasputin had taken control of SIVA and began to infect the frames and the Iron Wolves. The remaining Wolves followed the Iron Lords to the Replication Chamber, but we lost them and Efrideet before we could reach it. There, the worst of SIVA twisted my fellow Iron Lords, my good friends._

 _Timur tried to detonate the Chamber, but Felwinter argued that they could use its power to take control of our enemies. Both were consumed by the swarm shortly thereafter. Perun and Gheleon, while they were rivals before this outbreak, would stand side by side to fight off the swarm. Radegast and Silimar embraced each other one last time before they were consumed. Skorri sang her Iron Song one last time, as a eulogy for her friends. But Jolder..._

 _Jolder was beautiful, as always. She wore her battle paint right before we left, and I remember her laughter, her joy, her smile, as she closed the doors and detonated herself to seal it shut._

 _I was outside with my axe, I was the only one who was uncorrupted, but I wish..._

* * *

He bent down on his hands and knees in front of a giant statue of a Titan, presumably Jolder, and started crying without his helmet, "I wish that I had died that day. I wish more than anything to be with my friends now."

All three of us went over to comfort him. "Hey," said Shin, "I know how it feels to lose someone close to you, how it feels to kill anyone; I slaughtered an entire Fallen House without mercy. I was following orders blindly from a Sovereign that I barely knew, I killed a usurper in cold blood. I lost two people who are very close," then she said, "But here I am, strong as ever, if not more so."

"Same here," I added, "I had to deal with the pain of watching my friends die, then killing an entire country on orders and, in some part, retaliation. Even though I question my orders, I still pressed the red button, I still pulled the trigger, on both Drumpf and Putin. I will always carry that burden of playing judge, jury, and executioner, but I'd rather do it myself so that no one else has to."

Saladin wiped his eyes, "So, you want me to be brave?"

Mala nodded, "It's what everyone needs you to do, you need to be brave in order to see this SIVA Crisis through."

Shiro burst into the Temple shouting, "LORD SALADIN! LORD SALADIN!"

Saladin dried his eyes again, then tried to mask his saddened voice, "Yes, Shiro?"

"SIVA is beginning to spread across the Cosmodrome! If we don't do something about it, then the entire Solar System will fall to its knees!" he showed us a holographic star chart of the inner planets, inferring the predicted times that it would take SIVA to infect each planet initially and completely, "SIVA will impact the Moon within 30 minutes, Venus and Mars in 4 hours, and Mercury within 8! Then in under 24 hours, the corruption would consume the planets completely!"


	62. Cleansed

CLEANSED

Zavala watched the report on the holovision screen, _"_ _3 Guardians were reported dead in the Plaguelands just a few minutes ago. Max Prodigy and Shin Malphur had some sort of involvement in these murders, and s ome people say that the rogue Guardians were acting on the orders of former Iron Banner representative, Saladin Forge. General Lysander is at the hangar now._

"So Lysander, you say that these 'Iron Lords' are somehow behind the attack on our soldiers?" asked a reporter.

Lysander answered with, "Yes, Saladin is recruiting Guardians that will not voluntarily work with Zavala. Max and Shin, as well as Shiro, Cayde, and Ikora, are all in on a conspiracy to overthrow the Speaker and plunge this glorious and majestic City into socialism, into communism. We saw that with their attack on the Consensus, the Tower, and the City. These are the reasons why we need the Concordat back, to make sure that the people are secured inside the walls, for safety."

"Ok, but will that cause some fears to rise among the citizens, fear of a dictatorship, for example?"

"No, the citizens have already accepted this with the Consensus and the previous Speaker."

"Can you verify this?"

"Umm," he stumbled, "Maybe? These are just alternative facts that you should and must accept! As a matter of fact," he looked into the camera when he spoke, "I urge Speaker Zavala to authorize the use of our torture and brainwashing methods on everyone, from our enemies to our allies, from our citizens to our military and police, we need to make sure that everyone is on our side!"

"Well," said the reporter as they turned back to the camera, "We'll get more on the story as this war develops and becomes more entertaining for the viewers at home. Now back to you, Bill."

* * *

I asked, "How can this be? Have the Splicers discovered the full use of SIVA?"

"I don't think so," answered Shiro, "But we intercepted a signal coming from the Plaguelands. It says, 'We invite all of the...' Eliksni? '...to share this momentous occasion with Aksis, Archon Prime. Each House will be granted the opportunity to become one of us, united under a common goal with The Miracle. All we ask for in return is a large, unarmed enemy specimen from your territory to be given at Bunker Triglav. You'll be rewarded with a piece of this Miracle to plant into your lairs. Watch it grow, sustain it, and keep it fed. Let it grow without bounds, without limits, and you will be rewarded with immortality, just like all of us were before the Whirlwind. -Signed, Kovik, Splicer High Priest.'"

"Ok," I began to say, "What is the Whirlwind? And how did they learn to write invitations similar to the format in the Before?!"

"A more important question would be, 'How did Kovik rise so quickly?'"

"SIVA!" answered Saladin, "We need to contain and destroy it before it gets out of hand!"

"But, you said it yourself that SIVA can infect anyone," argued Shiro, "How are we going to get into the Replication Chamber if we can't find protection?"

"There is protection, Shiro," said Tyra as she entered, "And it's in the labs of Clovis Bray."

"And there's our plan," I said, "We storm the labs and grab this vaccine, then we dive into the heart of the Replication Chamber, and destroy it for good!"

Shin asked, "And what about Zavala and the Tower? Aren't they going to be on Mars?"

I added, "And who exactly is 'Lysander'?"

Shiro and Saladin exchanged looks, but it was Tyra who answered, "He was the Warlord known as Rezyl Azzir, until he went to the Moon in search of power. Skorri trailed him with Perun at her side, but he just disappeared. But what's weirder is that a week later, a Titan named Lysander pops out of nowhere, reportedly with the same meat and bone as Azzir. Either Lysander is a twisted Azzir, or a Hive Ascendant stuffed into Azzir's flesh."

"Creepy," I shuttered.

"I know, right?"

"So," interrupted Mala, "Lysander has control of the Tower thanks to Zavala, and now his men are hunting us?"

"Yep," answered Shin, "And it gets worse: he might be looking for a way to control SIVA, maybe the Splicers as well."

"We need to get to Mars, quickly!" I deduced. And just like that, Mala, Shin, and I ran back to our ships and flew over to Clovis Bray Labs on Mars, starting at the Overwatch of Clovis Bray. Once we landed, we noticed that it was too quiet; not a single Cabal soldier or corpse in sight. We ran into a hallway, "I don't get it, the Cabal should be attacking us right now. Where are they?"

"A good question for another time," answered Tyra, "Now, can you find the SIVA prototypes?"

"I thought we were here to get protection," remarked Shin, "Not prototypes!"

"Well, I need the prototypes to make the protection," corrected Tyra.

"Ok, ok," I said, "Let's just get this done!"

Jared scanned one of the servers, "Who knew that finding deadly weaponry would be so easy? There's a data vault just below-"

At that point, I heard a bullet ringing by my ears, and I instinctively pulled Jared aside. All of us ducked behind cover. "Tower Guardians!" I whispered, "but how did they know we were here?"

"I was wondering the same thing!" whispered Shin.

Mala sent out Nightingale to scan for enemies, "25 Guardians surrounding the building, with 10 additionals inside."

"How many in the next room?" I asked.

"4, all Hunters with snipers."

"Damn!"

"What do we do?" asked Mala.

Shin pulled out her Black Spindle and fired 4 rounds into the Hunters' heads. "Now, we run!"

As we did so, the dead Hunters' radios said, "Sierra November 86-89 are down. Remain alerted for the Rogue Guardians."

"They know we're here," I said as we ran down the stairs to the second floor, "We need to keep an eye out!"

As soon as we reached the second floor, 3 out of the 6 green-fisted Titans began firing at our doorway. "They're upstairs! Kill the Rogues!" All 6 six marched upstairs and met us with bullets.

I threw a Storm Grenade at the brigade, electrocuting and frying them to a crisp. "Come on!" I said, "We need to grab the prototypes before the reinforcements arrive!"

"I second that!" said Shin, and we glided down to the lower half of the second floor. Once we landed, we descended through an elevator shaft to reach the SIVA laboratories, and then we noticed the Cabal and Fallen bodies on the floor.

"The Cabal weren't going down without a fight, but I wonder why the Devils would fly all the way out here," I said.

Shin investigated the bodies, "Because they aren't Devils," then she met my eyes, "They're Wolves!"

"So the Fallen already have an alliance among the Houses?" commented Shiro, "I need to update my field data!"

"Yeah," said Shin, "They've had an alliance ever since Skolas's insurrection..."

Mala finished Shin's sentence, "...Which means that they could've known about SIVA before their S.A.B.E.R. struck the bunker!"

"We need those prototypes!" I concluded, "Nightingale, can you scan the archives for these prototypes?"

"I can try," she said, "but it could take a while," she flew over to the console to scan it, "Ok, we have one for building bridges and colonies, another one for weaponry, one for armor enhancements (that's neat)," then she glowed with a bright blue hue, "And we have a winner! Cybernetic diagnostics! Exactly what the Fallen would need to-"

Our glory was cut short by a voice shouting, "THERE! IN THE LABS! MAKE IT RAIN FLESH!" from the elevator shaft.

I tossed a grenade in that direction, then we ran for cover. Someone fired a rocket at our original position, causing the archives to explode. I asked Nightingale, "Do you have the archive records in your memory banks?"

"Fresh and crystal clear!" announced the Ghost.

"Well done! Now let's find those proto-" Another rocket was launched at us. "DUCK!" we said in unison, and we did.

"Damn!" said the Titan in the shaft, "They're too slippery!"

Another one shouted, "I'll make short work of them!" and he charged at us with a Fist of Havoc.

We jumped out of the way and Shin threw a Fusion Grenade at him. The other Titan got her with a rocket, but she triggered her self-res, moved up the shaft, and threw a grenade at the Titan, following that with more grenades at his comrades. I followed her up to the second floor and fell into Stormtrance, killing off the remaining 13 Green Guardians.

Tyra asked, "Is everything alright?"

"We're fine," answered Shin, "We know where the prototypes are hidden."

"They're in a vault below the laboratories!" added Mala.

A familiar voice interrupted with, "Well then, I should have no problems with retrieving them!"

"ZAVALA!" shouted Saladin, "WHAT THE HELLMOUTH ARE YOU DOING ON THESE CHANNELS!?"

"I just wanted to say hello to Max and his team before I blow them to bits!" cackled Zavala.

"Why?" I asked, "To gain access to SIVA?"

"Exactly!"

"But why would you want SIVA?"

"Part of me wants to let you live long enough to find out," the speaker paused, giving more weight to his words, "But the other part knows better!" Then he shouted off to the side, "SEND IN THE MOTHER OF ALL BOMBS, LYSANDER!" And the comms line to the City died.

I asked Mala, "Can we use the elevator shaft?"

She answered, "Yes, but I need a rocket-" then she saw a loaded rocket launcher lying on the ground and ran towards it, "Nevermind!" She grabbed it, ran back to the shaft, aimed down at the elevator, and fired the only rocket in the chamber. The elevator's pullies burst into bits and the elevator hit the basement floor. "Come on!" said the Sub-mind, "We need to get those prototypes!" and she fell through the shaft, stopping at the first basement floor.

I looked down at the shaft, "I'm not so sure about this."

Shin looked at me and said, "Do you have enough power to drive a missile away?"

I replied, "I don't know, but it's worth a try."

She laughed and said, "Well then, you'll need me. One Warlock against a fast missile won't stand a chance, but two? Two can get the job done!"

I half-nodded; part of me said, _Don't let her get killed!_ but the other part said, _She's right, you know._ "Alright," I said, "Let's stop a bomb!" Shin and I ran outside, right in front of the Clovis Bray building. There wasn't a single Cabal in sight, but green markings now littered the buildings at the surface of the red sand. Abruptly, a Jumpship from the Tower appeared in the sky and launched a gargantuan missile at the labs. Shin and I tried concentrating on the missile but to no avail. We looked at each other and I said, "It's not working!" The missile was moving closer to the labs.

Shin suggested, "How about a Psionic link?"

"That could work!" We focused on each other, picturing each other in our minds. I focused on her aquamarine skin, her sea green eyes, and her powerful stature. I don't know what she saw in me, but I do know that we were glowing after the psionic link. The missile was almost at its destination. We focused once again at the missile, freezing it mid-air, and telekinetically directing it back to its ship, creating an explosion in the sky. The link broke, both of us fell to the ground.

The link broke, both of us fell to the ground. Mala rushed out of the labs, "Are you two alright?"

"Yeah," I said, "We're fine."

"And we just drove a missile away from Golden Age laboratories!" added Shin.

"Nice!" replied Mala, "I have the prototypes, all of them!"

"Alright! Let's finish this SIVA crisis!"

* * *

Aksis laid down on an operating table in the Perfection Complex, 5 different Dregs and Shanks attended the operation, with Vosik at the head of the table. "Might I sssssssssssuggessssssssssst more Ether before moving on with your legsssssssssssss?" asked the red cloud of nanites above him.

Aksis's top half was almost covered in fresh steel from his forge, making it appear larger than his original form. "No," he answered, "I musssssssst have more SSSSSSSSSSIVA, not jussssssssst on my sssssssssskin, but in my inner organsssssssssssssss asssssssssss well," then he corrected himself, "More than that, I want SSSSSSSSSSSIVA to become my organsssssssssssss!"

"Assssssssss you wissssssshhhhhhh," then the cloud dug into the waist, severing Aksis's lower half away from the top, consuming the heart, lungs, stomach, and liver.

Aksis screamed. Vosik was standing by with an Ether tank to alleviate the pain, but Aksis shouted, "NO! I MUSSSSSSSSSSSSSST ENDURE THIS PAIN! I MUSSSSSSSSSSSST BECOME A KELL!"

"But you're dying!" reasoned Vosik, "You need to ssssssssssssstay alive!"

"MY OLD LIFE HASSSSSSSSSSSS PAIN! THROUGH THISSSSSSSS NEW PAIN, I SSSSSSSHHHHHHHALL GAIN POWER! AND FROM THISSSSSSSSSS POWER, I SSSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHALL CREATE NEW LIFE!" He screamed again, looking for a solution. "THERE!" he pointed to a diamond hole held up only by large SIVA stems, "GET ME UP THERE! I MUSSSSSSSSSST HAVE MORE SSSSSSSSSSIVA!"

"But sssssssssssir-"

"DO IT!"

Vosik reluctantly attached more steel to Aksis using some SIVA mites and tentacles, then with the help of the Shanks, hoisted him up to the hole, where a bunch of tentacles reached out and penetrated the back, supplying Aksis with all of the SIVA he needs to complete his apotheosis. Aksis cracked his neck as SIVA replaced his organs, his Ether, his previous life. In that one moment, he shed his organic skin for something stronger, he peeled his Ether for something better, he ripped out his previous functions as an organic lifeform for a chance to become a machine god. _My Perfectttttttiiiiiiiion Complexxxxxxxxx will be a temple! I will soon become the god of a new world!_


	63. The Ironsbane

THE IRONSBANE

Lysander entered the Speaker's office with a report in his right hand, "Zavala," he said as he walked up the steps, "This is the latest report from Mars: 'The Mother of All Bombs was launched at the Clovis Bray building in an unorthodox manner; the launch was signed off by Speaker Zavala and General Lysander alone, and despite rejections from all factions, the missile was fired at a Golden Age facility.'" Lysander slammed the report down on the table, face up.

Zavala was too busy fiddling and playing with everything on his desk, pretending that it was a toy-sized mini-golf course. "So it's settled, Max and his team are dead, at the price of an ancient building."

Lysander picked up the report again, continuing where he left off, "'The missile, however, did NOT hit the target!'"

Zavala sat up, "Really? Then where did it go!?"

"'It was driven away from Clovis Bray at a 90-degree angle and was sent back to its ship, resulting in a fatal explosion!'" The general slammed the report down one more time, "And yet, we still do not have a SIVA prototype within these walls!"

"So," answered Zavala, "We'll go to the source," he turned on the Tower PA, "This is Speaker Zavala! We demand that all Guardians must be ready for an assault into the Plaguelands. Tonight, SIVA will be ours for the taking!"

* * *

We landed in the Iron Temple and gave all of the prototypes to Tyra, who tried to ship us again before telling everyone, "I'm going to need some time to develop the vaccines."

"Well," said Shiro, "We don't have time!"

"What do you mean!?" we asked, "We have plenty of time!"

"Not when the Fallen have reorganized in the Cosmodrome! Especially not when the City is closing in on the Replication Chamber!"

"How much longer?" I asked.

"4 hours, at most."

Shin yanked my hand and said, "Welp! We're leaving!" And just like that, we were off to the Plaguelands again. "Ok, Shiro. What's the plan?"

"The best option we have is an old tanker close to what they call the Archon's Keep. The tanker acts like a reactor to power the Keep and the Forge beyond it."

"And SIVA connects the rest?" I guessed.

"All the way to the Replication Chamber," finished Shiro.

"Anything else?"

"We're still getting intel about that, and you'll be the first to know when it comes up."

"Duly noted."

Mala, Shin, and I landed in the Lord's Watch, just in time to avoid the speeding City Sparrows that were emblazoned with green fists. "Shiro! Are you getting this?" Jared took pictures of the Sparrows, the Guardians, and the symbols.

"Yeah. Wait a minute!" Shiro paused for while, then said, "Those are Concordat symbols! They haven't been seen in the City for years!"

"Wait, what is the Concordat?"

"We'll discuss this later," answered Saladin, "Right now, you need to get into the tanker and disrupt the power flow."

"We're on it!" We summoned our own Sparrows and headed for the Giant's Husk. The Husk was an oil tanker that was ripped into 3 different parts, one was a raised cargo hold, another was the tanker's side and our entrance, and the last part was a stack of living quarters and offices that were parked near the engines. It was this part that held the reactor. We ran up a flight of stairs to the second floor, killing Splicers along the way. Once we reached the reactor inside the tanker, Mala killed the Splicers guarding the internal reactor. "This is easy!" I said, looking the reactor itself, "There are two different cores here. If we swap them between their sockets, it might short circuit the power flow!"

"It could work!" said Shin, and she took the Arc core out of its blue socket, placing it in the red one. Simultaneously, I took the SIVA core out of its red socket and placed it into the blue one. The reactor began to explode. "LET'S GET OUT OF HERE!" We ran out the opposite side, summoned our Sparrows outside, and raced to the Archon's Keep, avoiding explosions of SIVA pyramids and tentacles wherever we went.

The Archon's Keep was just like the grounds around Isengard, three tall smelters with artificial lava pools opposite the observation deck, with excess lava flowing down the cracks in the ground to a cliff on the right side, the skies were almost dark gray due to the massive outputs of carbon from the smokestacks, and the ground wasn't covered with snow, but rather ash. The observation deck was round and stood against a rock wall, the back of the deck led to the Archon's Forge, and the front was surrounded by a small set of stairs.

As soon as we entered the Keep, an explosion from the deck tore the roof off of its pillars. "Looks like the Splicers needed to guard that reactor thoroughly," said Mala.

"They'll be on that site soon enough," said Shiro, "Do you have eyes on the Concordat?"

"No, we're assuming the worst."

"THEN WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!?"

We kicked the accelerators into action again, speeding through the deck to reach the Forge, sprinting through it and an unknown cavern filled with Splicers, to a tunnel leading to some sort of bunker for a Warmind. The bunker started off with a generator room, with Splicers bodies on the ground. "They're already here!" remarked Shin.

"No time to kill Splicers, just move!" replied Saladin.

From the back of the generator room, there was a tunnel that ran to the control deck of some large laboratory, below this ran a large cavern surrounding the Replication Chamber. Mala kept grabbing every SIVA fragment she could find. Once we reached the cavern, Mala diverted off to the left, while Shin and I took care of the right, still no living Splicers in sight. Mala ran back to us and said, "There's something strange about these fragments."

Out of curiosity, I asked, "Like what?"

"Not sure," answered the Sub-mind, "But I have some theories."

"Save them for later," said Shiro, "You need to destroy that Chamber!"

We entered the Replication Chamber and ran across a SIVA infected bridge to reach the heart of the Chamber. "No sign of the Concordat," I said.

"For that is what we want you to believe!" announced Zavala, now clad in Concordat armor. He rounded a corner to where we could see him.

"What are you doing here?" asked Mala.

"The same reason as you," answered Hideo in similar armor, mirroring Zavala's movements, "To gain control of SIVA."

"We've come to destroy it!" I quipped.

"And how many of your teammates will believe that!?" shouted Lysander.

Shin defended me with, "He's one of the most steadfast and proud Guardians that I have ever seen! You, on the other hand, are wretched, vile, and cruel, even to your teammates!"

Lysander laughed, "Wretched? From where you stand, Shin Malphur, I am the least wretched person in this room! Your actions against the House of Wolves and the Reef are no better than mine!"

"I did what I had to do to protect the people of these worlds! I defended my kin against a corrupt usurper and tyrant!"

"I knew Uldren Sov as well, he also wanted to protect the Awoken-"

"-by killing off anyone who rebelled against him, playing judge, jury, and executioner wherever he went! People should not be imprisoned against their will, physically, mentally, or legally!"

Lysander cackled, "You three never understand!" He pressed a button on his helmet, bent forward, and removed it from his head. Lysander was bald, close to pale white, and had a large swastika tattoo on the top of his head. He bent back to straighten himself, revealing his smug grin, grey eyes, and three bullet holes in his head.

I gasped in shock, "ERIK LARSON!"

Erik grinned, "So you do remember your first kill!" his deep, ominous voice was more prevalent than ever, "Tell me, what did it feel like?"

"Fire and water," I answered, "Anger and bliss, Sorrow and Hope," I paused, looking for the right words, "You brought an apocalypse down on me, and when I killed you, I felt reborn."

"Simple sword-logic, basic instincts," laughed the traitor, "What does Shin think about that?"

I knew what he was trying to do: break us up. Typical Erik. But Shin stunned everyone in the room with, "He stood up against an extremist government, just as I did. He protected his people when the rest of the world caved into darkness. He is the last light from his world," then she looked at me with deep sincerity, "and I couldn't be more proud of anyone else." I loosened myself and smiled at her, she reciprocated the feeling.

Erik growled, "FINE! IF YOU STAND TOGETHER, THEN YOU SHALL DIE TOGETHER!" He shouted to roof, "SIVA! REPLICATE ELIMINATE IMMUNIZE ALL OF THEM!"

The doors shut behind us, a red cloud formed near the ceiling, hissing, "CONSSSSSSSSSUME ENHANCCCCCCCCCCCE REPLICATE!" An Iron Lord's body was yanked up to the ceiling, dropping an Iron Battle Axe, similar to Saladin's. _"I need to grab SIVA, Timur! It is the only way!"_ The Remnant of Felwinter dropped immediately afterward, ominously laughing.

Shin grabbed the Axe and instantly lit it on fire. She properly introduced it to Felwinter's crotch and head, killing and burning it into ash.

The cloud hissed, "AAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGGHH! MY NANITESSSSSSSSSSS!"

"SUMMON MORE IRON LORDS!" shouted Erik, "AND UNLEASH SIVA ACROSS THE WORLDS!"

The Remnants of Timur, Gheleon, and Jolder were pulled up to the ceiling. _"Felwinter, my love, please don't do this!"_

 _"PERUN! SILIMAR! PLEASE DON'T GIVE IN!"_

 _"The Door! I have to, Saladin!"_

The three corrupted Iron Lords slammed down to the ground, accompanied by a low hum in the air. Shin took care of Timur, Mala trapped Gheleon with her grenade and smoke, and fired her whole magazine from her Qullim's Terminus into the Iron Lord's head, and I apologized to both Saladin and Jolder for what I did next: I fell into Stormtrance and electrified the infected corpse of Jolder into submission.

4 more bodies rose, the hum went deeper.

 _"Go, Saladin! Warn the others!"_

 _"Gheleon!"_

 _"I'm sorry, Gheleon."_

 _"My friends, I'm so sorry that I failed you."_

Radegast, Perun, Silimar, and Skorri dropped from the ceiling, Jolder rose from her coma, the deep hum's pitch increased into a loud, piercing whine. I fell to the ground again, curling up into a ball, and covering my ears with my hands. The five remaining Iron Lords surrounded me, moving in for the kill, and I closed my eyes waiting for the end.

Mala fired her void arrow at Jolder, tethering all 5 Iron Lords. Shin chopped off Radegast's and Perun's heads and burned their bodies. Skorri grabbed Shin, I fought against myself to cover my ears, even with the whine making my knees buckle. I drew Yuulstrang and let loose a whirlwind to disintegrate Skorri and Silimar. Erik, Hideo, and Zavala made a break for the open doors, I followed them, dragging myself and the sword to the door. The red cloud said, "I CAN'T ALLOW YOU TO ESSSSSSSSSSCAPE!" and it sent several nanites into my spine, puncturing it, and entering my blood stream.

I screamed, "AAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUGH!"

"MAX!" Shin ran over to me and picked me up, bridal style. "Are you alright?"

I could barely speak, but weakly said, "...fine *cough cough* i'm fine."

Mala chopped off Jolder's head, releasing the Iron Lady's helmet. She grabbed it, ran to the console at the entrance, and hit the self-destruct button. They ran towards the exit. "Hold on Max," said Shin, "We're almost there!"

I caught myself saying, "cooooooooooooonssssssssssssuuuuuuuuuuuummmmmmmeeeeeeee"

Mala said, "Come on, buddy! We're almost there!"

"I know, it's just...eeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnnhaaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnncccccccccccccccce"

Shin and Mala reached the end of the bridge and barely exited the Replication Chamber. "Mala, do you have anything to stop the infection?"

"I have an Athelas Shot!"

"Athelas?"

I fought against my new SIVA directives, but it pushing, "rrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeepliiiiiiiiiiiiicaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaate!"

Mala ripped open my robes and struck a needle near my heart, plunging an unknown medicine into my blood, allowing my heart to pump it throughout my circulatory system. Shin pressed her head close to my flat chest, just as my vision turned to white.


	64. The Beginning of the Apocalypse

THE BEGINNING OF THE APOCALYPSE

 _I stood in a blank space, without any landmarks to guide me. As I walked, a landscape began to form in the shape of D.C., the day that Fireteam Alpha infiltrated the FSA. Jared materialized first, complete with a blue long sleeve shirt and a vest, complimented by a pair of khakis, "Did you ever consider the course of your actions? Do you ever think before you act?"_

 _"I have," I answered, "And trust me, I wouldn't have chosen those actions if there were other alternatives."_

 _Jared morphed into his Ghost form, "Then maybe I should just let you die! Or I'll kill you myself!"_

 _I backed away from him and into Isabella. She wore a bulletproof vest over her Linkin Park shirt. I quickly apologized, "Sorry. I'm so sorry."_

 _"Sorry?" she said angrily, "Sorry!? Sorry that you left me there to die? Or that you never bothered to check!? Or maybe you're sorry for bringing me back to Hell in the first place!"_

 _"I swear! I had no way of checking!"_

 _"Yeah, that's what you say to yourself so that you can sleep soundly at night!" she pointed a pistol at my head._

 _I ran away from her and into Mark. He asked, "Are going to apologize to me too?" My brother shook his head, "You're weak, and fragile," he morphed into a Hunter, "You are meant to be cut away!"_

 _I backed into Veronica, pale white and conservatively dressed, with her long hair drawn into a ponytail. "You are a dead figure, made by a dead power, in the shape of the dead."_

 _I killed her with a Hand Cannon, but Erik surprised me from behind with, "Like me, all you will ever do is kill." I repeated my previous action, prompting the other three friends to walk towards me, mechanically talking in unison, "You know nothing anger, malice, and hatred. You are a monster made from the Darkness."_

 _I fired a bullet into each, quipping with, "The Traveler is Light! You are all creatures of Darkness!" But when I looked at the bodies again, I noticed that they were all versions of me, now lifeless and cold. I looked down at my Hand Cannon, now revealed to be Thorn, and wept._

 _"I thought you were better than this." I turned around to find Shin standing there. She said, "You would callously put down former friends just to save your own skin?"_

 _"They threatened me!" I cried._

 _The skies went dark, and the whine from the Replication Chamber came back with an Earth-shattering effect. I fell to the ground, covering my ears, but the noise passed through my hands. Shin hovered over me with the Last Word and said, "It's always about you, isn't it?" She pulled the trigger._

* * *

I woke up in a bed inside of an old building. "Huh? Where am I?"

Saladin walked through the doorway to my left. "There's the Young Wolf!" he said, "Bright as ever!"

I looked around, the room was nothing but stone walls and window holes. "Wha- What happened?"

"SIVA infected you, but Malahayahti, Tyra, and Efrideet concocted a cure to your problem."

"Where are they now?"

Tyra and Mala walked in one at a time, leading a new figure in. She was wearing a dark-green long sleeve shirt with small pauldrons, a white cape with a fluffy collar, and a white gladiator-like helmet. "Hey, Max!" she said.

I looked at her, "Lady Efrideet?"

"You bet," she answered, "You took a nasty hit back there, didn't you?"

"I guess," I tried to sit up, but I groaned from the effort.

"You need to lie down. I'll send for Lady Shin."

"Wait," I tried sitting up again, to no avail, "Lady Shin?"

"Yep, she's an Iron Lord now!"

I couldn't be more proud, "Tell her I said, 'Congratulations!'"

"I will!" and she left, leaving Saladin, Tyra, and Mala in the room with me.

Mala approached the bed and crouched on the left side, "Max, do you remember the fragments that I collected?"

"Vaguely," I said curiously.

"Well, they led me to this," she pulled out a jet black pyramid that was clipped on the top, leaving a square-sized depression that glowed red.

"What is it?"

"It's called a SIVA engine, and I got it from doing a little reconnaissance in the Plaguelands, specifically in the Splicer's Den and Perfection Complex."

"Perfection Complex?"

"I'll explain later, but the weird part is that I found 6 of these engines!"

"That is weird," then I asked, "So, how did you get these SIVA engines?"

"By activating 5 hidden monitors."

"Cool!" I said, "So, can I have one of those engines?"

"Yes, but only when you're feeling better," Mala rose, pocketed the engine, and left the room, just as Shin came in.

"Max?" she asked.

"Hey, Lady Shin!" I answered with a smile. Shin ran over to my side, wrapped her arms around me, and began kissing me. "Gently, Shin," I gasped, "Please, gently!"

She kissed me one last time on the lips, almost suffocating me. "Sorry," she said, "I thought I lost you."

"It's ok, I'm alright," I tried to get up, but I almost threw my back and screamed from the pain.

Shin dragged my back down to the bed again and said, "Lie down, Max! You're still healing!"

"Healing!? For how long!?"

"Two days," answered Tyra.

"I've been out for two days!?" I exclaimed, "What happened while I was gone!?"

"Lady Shin, I think you should tell him," and with that, Tyra and Saladin left the room.

Shin watched them leave, then she grinned at me. I was getting a little worried for a second, "Uhh, Shin? Why are you...?"

"A boy, a girl, alone in a room with a bed!"

I sighed, "I'm Asexual, I don't typically want that thing!"

"I know, it's just..." she looked off to the side.

"A fantasy?" I asked.

She nodded, "Though, you're not in any shape to be doing that."

I grinned, "Like I ever want to."

Shin chuckled and said, "Alright, I'm going to tell you what happened while you were out..."

* * *

We came back to the Iron Temple with you and Jolder's helmet in tow. Tyra took you to this building and began to fix you up. Mala and I were given a ceremony of honor as we became Iron Lords. Then Shiro sent us into the Plaguelands, running through some patrols and killing off Splicers and the Concordat until we suddenly picked up a signal coming from the Archon's Forge. We hopped onto our Sparrows to find it, and it turns out that it came from that large laboratory we passed through. We had to rob a Captain of his Splicer Key to reach it, however, and the signal was guarded by a Splicer Tank! My new Axe took care of that. The signal, oddly enough, was Cass's old body! Somehow the Splicers managed to take her body from the Moon and place it there! (I suspect the House of Exile.)

Anyway, Cass appeared before us, saying, "Hello again, Shin! And who's your new girlfriend?"

Mala quipped, "I'm not her girlfriend! I'm AceAro!

"I'm sorry," said Cass, "You two just look adorable together. Anyways, I overheard the Splicers talking with an Archon Prime, soon-to-be-Kell, Aksis. Apparently, SIVA is undergoing a power shift between them and the Concordat!"

"Crap!" I said, "Did they list any specifics?"

"I'm not sure, but I believe that I had a weapon capable of destroying them one and for all: the Gjallarhorn."

"But it's trashed," then I thought, "What about the blueprints?"

"They would be in Feizel Crux's workshop, but I wouldn't recommend storming into the City until you have another teammate by your side."

I said to Mala, "You know who would be perfect?"

Mala nodded and said, "Oh yes! I think Anna definitely wants to infiltrate the City again!"

Meanwhile, Anna was investigating some phenomena in the Plaguelands: a Hive uprising near the Giant's Husk. Anna's Ghost noted that the Hive were aggressive, possibly chasing after something important. Once she reached the Husk, she reported finding a coded relay from the Splicers' High Priest on a Captain, and that the Splicers were corraling Thrall, Acolytes, Knights, and anything else that the Splicers could get their hands on, including Vex, Cabal, and Taken. Anna reported that the corraled enemies were warped and infused with SIVA, enough to be the Splicers' slaves and to start incubating and replicating SIVA inside themselves. When she got the call from us, she said, "Yes, please! I need a break from the worst-case scenario!"

So, the three of us infiltrated the Tower at Bannerfall, the last faction battle between the Concordat and the City. We found Crux's workshop on the City side of the old Tower/battlefield, and it was there that we discovered his last recording. He spoke with an old accent, possibly what you call French, and he started off with, "Bonjour! My name is Feizel Crux, I am the co-founder of my Rocket Launcher R&D team, and I am its last surviving member. My partner, Victor Lomar, and I worked on some of the most fierce Rocket Launchers of all time: The Truth and The Dragon's Breath. Both were the most feared weapons wielded by the bravest of Guardians, and both, unfortunately, met their demise later today. The Concordat pulled out an experimental Rocket Launcher that could fire a volley of rockets at whatever it was aimed at, and obliterate it completely. Everyone nicknamed it 'Dubious Ordinance'. But the worst part was Lomar's name on the Rocket Launcher itself!" He huffed every now and then, "I don't know if he was kidnapped and forced to build the Launcher, or if he did it of his own volition. Whatever the case, he's probably dead now."

That's what he started laughing, slowly but surely. "But, only I, Feizel Crux, have begun experimenting with a new Rocket Launcher, one that can destroy the Concordat's main weapon of choice! I call it the Gjallarhorn! A weapon capable of turning even the Ordinance to rubble! But to do so, it needs one thing that our previous works do not: Guardian's armor. With the armor of fallen Guardians from the battle of the Twilight Gap, I was able to construct one Gjallarhorn and test it. Iron Lords' armor would be stronger, but they are rare to come by these days. From the test, I concluded that the Gjallarhorn is more powerful than I expected!" (Oddly enough, he swooned.) "But, with great power comes great responsibility. So I entrusted this to the one Guardian that I trust, Cassandra Razar."

Just then, Concordat ships surrounded Bannerfall and announced, "This is your only warning! Surrender and die!"

"Not like we have any options," I said to Anna and Mala.

Crux continued, but he sounded paranoid now, "I don't have much time, the Concordat is on my heels now. If Lysander ever rises to power again, then take these blueprints..." just like that, a drawer opened up, revealing the schematics, "...to Lomar's original workshop in the Skyshock battlefield. There are weapon parts over there that make up the Gjallarhorn's skeleton, but you'll need to find dead Guardians' armor in order to make it fierce." The Concordat ships outside began firing into Bannerfall, wrecking everything in their sights. Crux finally said, "And remember this: If there is beauty in destruction, why not also in its delivery?"

I told Mala, "You have everything?"

"Yep."

"Let's move!" We made it to our ships before that Tower fell to rubble.

* * *

After Lady Shin finished her story, I said, "So you're going to Skyshock after you gather the Iron Lords' armor and tend to my wounds?"

"That's the plan," she nodded, "But are you going to be alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

Lady Shin shook her head and said, "Not without physical therapy," she placed a hand behind my back, "Now, can you raise your back?"

"I think so."

"Then do it slowly."

* * *

Zavala sat at his desk, listening to the ramble between Erik and Hideo downstairs. "I told you, 'Don't destroy any part of the City!' AND WHAT DID YOU DO!?" lectured Hideo.

Erik argued with, "That Tower was meant to be taken down decades ago! Besides, we couldn't let Max's team run off with the Gjallarhorn blueprints, yet you restricted me-"

"-from destroying a part of the City!"

"You know," said the traitor, "I'm working night and day to make sure that Zavala remains in power, and by extension, you and me! I can easily grab the Speaker's desk from both of you at any time!"

"So why won't you?"

He took Hideo out of Zavala's line of sight and whispered, "Because I want Zavala to keep uttering nonsense for propaganda purposes, then I'll start to loop each message and manufacture his voice for new utterances, then I'll kill him and put you in charge!"

Hideo grinned and nodded his head. Zavala asked, "What's going on down there?"

"Nothing!" answered Erik, "Just go back to your tweets."

Zavala said, "Sure, but you need to tell me what you're doing with SIVA!"

Erik smirked, "Alright, follow me," he led the Speaker and the Vice Speaker to a secret room in the Hanger and opened up a metal crate, "This, my servants, is our secret weapon!"

Zavala and Hideo looked at the rocket launcher inside the crate. It was fashioned out of satellite parts, a thick gray cylinder with golden rods bent at right angles around it, a cone in the back, and bulb with large pores covering its round surface. "What is it?" they asked.

"It is called the Dubious Ordinance, and it is my salvation," replied the traitor.

Two Concordat officers snatched Zavala from behind and crushed his Ghost. Zavala fell to the floor, gasping for breath, "YOU...TRAITOR! YOU'LL NEVER...EVER GET AWAY WITH THIS!"

Erik said, "Chain him against that wall."

Hideo protested, "This is an outrage!"

"On the contrary," said the Concordat leader, "This is what you've been waiting for!" He handed the Ordinance to Hideo, both grinned, the new Speaker took the Rocket Launcher, aimed it at the former Speaker, and fired a volley of rocket-propelled grenades. Zavala closed his eyes one last time as he was blasted into bits and pieces.


	65. Perfect Augmentation

PERFECT AUGMENTATIONS

Kovik stood in Foundry 113, looking at the lineup of large specimens from the Solar System: A Cabal Colossus procured by the House of Wolves, A Vex Hydra that was given by the House of Winter, and two Hive Ogres offered from the Houses of Exile and Kings, all with sacks over their heads. _All fine ssssssssspeccccccccimenssssssssss! But which to choose?_ The High Priest began experimenting on the Colossus with a syringe full of liquid SIVA, puncturing the neck pushing on the plunger. The Colossus became enraged, blindly swinging his arms and meandering, until he passed out. "Good, but not what I want," said the High Priest, "Sssssssssend hisssssssssss body back to Marsssssssssss, it will an incubator for other lifeforms there!" The Wolves bowed and took the body back to their Skiffs, along with SIVA samples to fuse their bodies with. Next was the Hydra: Kovik injected SIVA into its mind core, causing it to explode. "That one'ssssssss worssssssssssse! You musssssssssssst sssssssssssspread SSSSSSSSSSSSSSIVA ussssssssssing yoursssssssssssselvessssssssssss!" The House of Winter also left for their Skiffs, leaving Exile and Kings all alone with Kovik and their Ogres. Kovik inoculated one with SIVA, and seconds later, Crimson mechanical veins stitched themselves into the Ogre, giving it obsidian colored armor, a sure sign that it has infected the entire body. The Ogre's Eye Beam was now scarlet, and excess SIVA began to eminate from the specimen. Kovik's smile widened, "Now, THERE'SSSSSSSSSSSS a fine sssssssssspecccccccccimen! Exxxxxxxxile, you have done well! Allow me to pay you in full," A cloud of nanites shed from his body and charged at the House of Exile, "Conssssssssssume Enhancccccccccce Replicate!"

* * *

Shin helped me get on my feet again, literally. She told me to raise and lower my back a few times per day, before moving onto my legs. "One small step at a time," she said. Her hands were placed on my shoulder and back, supporting me as I walk, and just in case if I fall. 3 days later, I was walking normally without her help and I started to jog around the courtyard. A day after that, I began to run again. Shin and Mala offered to race me, after which, both noted that I was too fast. Saladin stepped in, "Well well well, Max Prodigy is restored to health! You ready to get back in the field?"

"Always!" I answered eagerly.

Shiro came forward with a scout's report of the Plaguelands, "Then I want you and two others to find the Splicers' High Priest and put him down."

"Any reasons why?"

The former Vanguard Scout handed over the file, "Kovik's got a Splicer crew pushing into a Hive Nest, and he has several more digging into Hive, Vex, Cabal, and Taken strongholds across the system. He wants to infect every single thing with SIVA..."

"So, decapitate the snake and prevent the infection?"

"My thoughts exactly!"

"Alright! Shin, Mala, you're with me!"

"Actually," said Shin, "I have other engagements, concerning my SIVA engine."

"Oh!" I said apologetically, "I'm sorry, I didn't know."

"You're fine, but Mala can accompany you."

"Ok, is Anna with me?"

"No, she's partnered with me and Graham."

I was confused, "Who's Graham?"

"That would be me!" A voice from behind announced. It belonged to a Hunter who had the build of an 18-year-old Transgender guy. "Hi, I'm Graham!" he grinned.

"Hi, Graham! My name is-"

"Max Prodigy, right?"

My eyes widened in shock, "Yeah! How-"

"Shin told me all about you, that you're Ace, that you're a Warlock, and that you're her boyfriend!"

I nodded and joked, "Sounds like me alright, I'm wearing his armor!"

"Yep, and she has multiple fantasies about you!"

Shin began to sweat profusely, "Graham! You weren't supposed to tell him that!"

"I wasn't!" the new Hunter was shocked, then he turned to me and said, "Uhhhhh, just forget that part."

I tried, but I couldn't. Then I remembered his voice from somewhere, "Wait a minute, you're Hawk Leader!"

Hawk Leader nodded, "That I am! Umm, my boyfriend is waiting for you and Lady Mala outside the Temple."

"Ok," we ran up the steps to the Temple.

Graham called up, "Oh yeah, umm, Max!"

I looked back at him, "Yes?"

He brought a fist to his chest, patted it twice, and informally saluted me with two fingers, "Fellow Ace!"

I grinned and repeated his gesture. Shin and Graham sprinted over to Anna and the three of them rode off in their ships. Mala and I reached the Temple to find an Exo Titan. He walked up to us and began gesturing with his hands. "Uhh, ASL?" I asked.

The Titan shrugged, then he used his fingers to sign "G A S L."

Mala began signing to him, then translated to me, "His name is Kaden-9, also known as Hawk Two, and former Ambassador between the City and Palamon."

I nodded then said, "What happened?"

Mala translated my words into GASL, then translated his signs into speech, "'The elections happened; once Zavala took command, I had to get Graham out of the City as soon as I could, risking my rank, station, and family, as if I even had one to start with.'"

"I'm so sorry for you, Kaden."

Kaden signed and Mala translated, "'It's alright, I'm happier now that I'm with Graham unconditionally.'"

"I'm happy for you!"

"Thanks! But we need to get going! We need to kill the High Priest!"

We ran to our ships and sped to the Plaguelands, landing outside Bunker Triglav. Jared gave us a full analysis: "The Splicers are using SIVA to augment and recode the Bunker's old defense protocols, but if we can destroy the three SIVA blossoms outside of the missile silos, we can force the bunker's codes back to their original state."

"It shall be done!" We arrived at Triglav in the middle of a battle between the Splicers and the Hive. After killing all of the outside enemies with our Pulse Rifles, Kaden destroyed the SIVA blossom in the open air, opening the main doors. Inside the first three rooms, Mala and I destroyed the blossoms in the left and right rooms, unlocking the main doors to the silos. Once we approached those doors, they opened up, revealing a horde of Hive Thralls and Acolytes led by 3 Knights and a Wizard, all of which were visibly infected and armored with SIVA. I reported, "Uhh, Shiro! These Hive are infected!"

"WHAT!? INFECTED!? MOVE TO THE SILOS ASAP! KILL EVERYTHING IN YOUR PATH! AND DESTROY THE HIVE NEST WHEN YOU'RE DONE!"

"Roger!" I replied as we mowed down the SIVA-Hive and navigated a twisting corridor to the silos. Once inside, Mala and Kaden hunted down the blossoms and anything else that was infected by SIVA in the surrounding rooms in each of the four silos while I planted improvised explosives, courtesy of Kaden, on each of the nuclear missiles that are still sitting in the centers.

Shiro said, "You're all that stands between Kovik and all of the mad SIVA-science he's cooking up down there, end this now!"

Once we reached the last silo, which was the main breeding ground for the Hive, we dropped down into a circular room which was converted into a Hive seeder of sorts, one that had an almost SIVA-augmented Ogre with spike balls for hands. "This doesn't look good," I remarked.

"Did you find the High Priest?"

"No, but there's an Ogre, and it's augmented!" exclaimed Mala.

An electronic voice echoed around the room, "FOR YOUR EXXXXXXXXXXTINCTTTTTTTTIIIIIIIIIIIIIION!" Kovik teleported behind the Ogre and fired a barrage of void shots from his cannon.

I took one peek at it and ducked behind cover, "HE'S GOT THE OGRE'S EYE ATTACHED TO HIS CANNON! THE SPLICERS HAVE MASTERED THE VOID!" I shouted over the High Priest's fire.

"AND YOU'RE MY FIRSSSSSSSSSSSST WITNESSSSSSSSSESSSSSSSSSSS TO THE FINAL EVOLUTTTTTTTIIIIIIIION OF THE HIVE!" A mechanical eye was lowered by a crane into the Ogre's head, snapping into place, and completing the augmentation of the Ogre. Splicers and Augmented Hive came out of the dark rooms ready to attack. Kaden handled the ads, I went to distract the Ogre, and Mala handled the High Priest. Kovik's Monster began firing a SIVA laser beam wherever I went, so I retaliated with my Omolon Sniper Rifle and aimed right for the lens, cracking it with each plasma bolt I fire. Kaden used his Hakke Pulse Rifle to slaughter anything augmented by SIVA, sometimes using a Hakke Shotgun in case if the enemies are getting too close for his comfort. Mala concentrated all of her fire on Kovik, hitting his head every single time. Kovik staggered then said, "YOU LAND IN MY LABSSSSSSSSSS TO DESSSSSSSSSSSSSTROY THISSSSSSSSSSS PERFECTTTTTTTTITIIIIIIIION!? FOOLSSSSSSSSSSS! YOU SSSSSSSSSHALL SSSSSSSSSSSSEE THAT MY WORK ISSSSSSSSSSSS INEVITABLE! ALL WILL BOW BEFORE AKSSSSSSSSSSSSSSISSSSSSSSSSSSS, THE KELL OF KELLSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! CONSSSSSSSSSSSSSUME ENHANCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCEEEEEEEEEE REPLICATE!" All of the ads dissolved into SIVA nanites, some of which repaired Kovik and his Monster, while the rest charged after us.

I threw a Solar Grenade at the nanites, burning them just in time, then directed a Fusion Grenade at the SIVA eye, destroying it and the Ogre. Kovik was enraged, firing the nonstop Wretched Eye's Gaze at us. Mala fired straight at the Eye, causing it to explode violently with the arm-cannon, releasing all of its Void energy upon Kovik. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGH!" The High Priest dissolved, just as Splicers and SIVA-Hive came out of dark rooms in retaliation. Kaden, Mala, and I climbed the walls up to the silos, with the Thrall and Dreg hordes in hot pursuit. Shiro asked, "Did you kill him?"

"Yeah, but these Splicers and Hive aren't backing down!" I reported.

"Then destroy the silos! NOW!"

Once we reached the entrance to the silos, Kaden pressed a button and the missiles detonated, ripping apart what remained of the infected Hive Nest. We made it out of Triglav just in time to see the mushroom cloud level the silos altogether. "Shiro, the Splicers did something else to the Hive."

"Really?" he asked curiously, "What was it?"

"They weren't just infecting the Hive with SIVA and augmenting them, the Splicers were also dissecting them and unraveling the secrets of the Void!"

Kaden signed. "That would've been a dangerous combination," translated Mala.

"I've seen enough!" announced Shiro, "Head back to the Iron Temple, I have a plan."

"After we find a few Public Events," she said, holding her ground.

* * *

Shin, Anna, and Graham just finished their strikes into the Nexus (where they vanquished a SIVA-infected Taken Hydra and its minions) and the Winter's Lair (where they destroyed an Archon Priest resurrected by SIVA). Shiro came on the comms, "Have you contained the SIVA outbreak on Venus?"

"Contained and neutralized, sir," answered Graham.

"But," said Shin, "We're now hunting for Public Events to prove our light to the SIVA engines."

"That's the same thing that Mala said!" exclaimed Shiro, "Alright, do so, then come back to me."

"Will do." She summoned her Sparrow and lead Anna and Graham to the Citadel, just in time to disrupt a Vex Ritual.


	66. Wonderful Destruction Beautiful Delivery

WONDERFUL DESTRUCTION, BEAUTIFUL DELIVERY

Vosik appeared before Sepiks Perfected once more, "Ssssssssepiksssssssssss, exxxxxxxplain yourssssssssssssself: Why did you ssssssssssssssummon me?"

"The Hive Nesssssssssssst in Bunker Triglav has been destroyed!" reported the Perfected Servitor, "With it, all of our resssssssssssearch on how to ~/conssssssssume enhanccccccccccce replicate/~ our foesssssssssssss!"

Vosik looked down for a second, then brought his head back up and said, "At leassssssssst Kovik left in time, right?"

Sepiks floated in his usual spot for a while, without a peep, trying to find the right words, "Oh humble Archpriessssssssssst, the High Priessssssssssst never left the bunker in time, he wassssssssssss devoured by a nuclear explossssssssssion!"

The Archpriest loudly mourned for the longest time in the Devils Lair, _My friend and the third part of the triad issssssssssssss dead!? But we were sssssssssssssuppossssssssssssed to live forever together! Why did he have to be taken away from us so violently!?_ Vosik rose from his sobbing and demanded, "TELL THE PERFECTED HOUSSSSSSSSSSSSSSE OF DEVILSSSSSSSSSSSSSS TO ~/CONSSSSSSSSUME ENHANCCCCCCCCCCCE REPLICATE/~ EVERYTHING IN THEIR SSSSSSSSSSSSSSIGHT! KOVIK'SSSSSSSSSSSSSS EXXXXXXXXXXPERIMENTSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS MUSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSST PERSSSSSSSSSSISSSSSSSSSST!"

* * *

After completing our Public Events, our additional strikes on the Moon, Venus, and Earth to ward off the Splicers and trash their experiments, scavenging Iron Lord armor, and killing off a few corrupted Iron Wolves, all six of us met back at the Iron Temple. Mala called for our attention, "Ok, guys! Look at your SIVA engines." When we did, we found that these engines had revealed 5 switches that had three settings: Top, Middle, Bottom. To the left side of these switches was a single button that passed 300 volts to the switches in series, and to the right of the switches were three different buttons, one synchronized to 190 volts, one to 250, and another to 360. All of us agreed that the Hunters worked towards the 190 mark, Titans to 250, and Warlocks to 360. After 10 minutes, Mala, Kaden, Shin, and I got ours to the benchmarks when the respective buttons started to glow red. Anna and Graham were having a hard time, so Shin and I helped both of them get to their goals, then we split into our groups of three to wirelessly tie our end voltages into each others' engines. Once we did so, the panel closed and the center glowed vibrantly. Mala stared at hers and said, "Fascinating! Even when we charge these Engines with our Light, they still resist us! Looks like the old code is a detailed defense protocol ending with, 'Replicate Eliminate Immunize'."

"From Erik Larson," I presumed.

"No," corrected Mala, "From something or someone else, but whatever this mind's identity is, it's unknown to us."

"Is there anything else, aside from a mind controlling matter?" I asked curiously.

"No," said the Sub-mind, "But I think I can build a weapon out of it!"

"A weapon?" signed Kaden, "What kind of weapon?"

"A Pulse Rifle that can deliver reprogramed SIVA nanites to any enemy and kill it off."

The Exo's eyes lit up, "Or to control them to fight for us!"

"Kaden," I said, "You're talking about enslaving anyone daring enough to cross us!"

The Exo Titan walked over to me, trying to gain dominance, "The Concordat did the same thing, it's time that we step up and take back the City by any means necessary!"

I looked him in the eye and firmly said, "I do not intend on becoming the enemy."

Kaden visibly scoffed, "What's the point about this if we can't take any risks?"

"We defend the people, that is the whole point of all of this!"

"Yeah, and we seem to be doing a good job at that!" he signed sarcastically.

"Kaden, please," said Graham, "Let's talk this through."

"Yeah, this guy needs to know what happens when you abandon the masses: they become slaves to their wallets, slaves to their schedules, slaves to a malicious government!"

"KADEN!" I shouted, "THEY ARE NOT SLAVES! WE HAVEN'T ABANDONED THEM!" I calmed down for a bit, "We're working on a plan, one that can take the City away from Erik's grip and place it in the hands of someone who cares about the people."

"Like who?" questioned Kaden, waiting for me to stumble and fall.

I surprised him with, "Ouros; after all of this misfortune that I've seen, I want someone who can represent a brighter future than the one Erik brings."

Kaden pondered for a while, then signed, "Will she answer?"

Anna backed me with, "She'll take any chance that she can get."

Kaden nodded and signed, "One chance, then it's my turn."

"Deal," I signed, then turned back to Mala and asked, "So, what will you need?"

Mala inspected the engine and said, "I'll need a SIVA Command Module, 3 SIVA chains, and at least 100 SIVA plates..."

"Ok."

"...per weapon."

I almost fell backward, "That is...a lot! How do we get this stuff?"

"The plates can come from anywhere in the Plaguelands, the Chains come from the champions of the Archon's Forge, and the Command Modules can be harvested from Sepiks."

"Ok then," replied Shin, "But if we're going to face Sepiks again, then we'll need our own Gjallarhorns from Skyshock."

"Skyshock?" asked Graham, "Like, the place that is infested with Hive seeders and Fallen artillery? That Skyshock!?"

"The same," I answered.

Shin looked eager to spring back into action, "Ohohohoh! Let's go!" The six of us went to our ships and piloted over to Skyshock, once a warmind defense facility, now a massive battleground staged between the Fallen and the Hive, oddly reminiscent of a WW1 beach, except with OKB buildings and crashed airplanes, and the only known place that houses a workshop for Victor Lomar.

We landed on one of the far corners of the shore, just in time to observe a battle between the Splicers, the Hive, and the Concordat. _Damn! They'll know that we're here!_ One of the Splicer Vandals shouted at the Concordat Titans, "GIVE OUR SSSSSSSSSSIVA BACK!" but they were met with a barrage of rockets.

Shin gasped, "The Dubious Ordinance!" then she looked at me with fearful eyes and shook me wildly, "We need the Gjallarhorns, now!"

"Right behind you!" I answered.

The Concordat saw us moving to the workshop and said, "THERE THEY ARE! KILL THEM OFF!" 3 different Ordinances were fired at us, we avoided the barriages, Anna fired her Zhalo Supercell at the three Hunters with their Rocket Launchers, killing them and their Ghosts easily. Shin pulled out Alex to check the area. "This is Lomar's Workshop, alright," said the Ghost, "There are parts of many Rocket Launchers here: Dragon's Breath, Truth, even Dubious Ordinance..."

"Wait a minute!" exclaimed Shin, "You're saying that Lomar was going to mass produce them!?"

"Looks like it," Alex paused, then said, "Aha! Gjallarhorn parts! Hidden under the desk!"

Mala ran to the other side of the desk, pulled out the bin labeled 'Gjallarhorn', and began assembling six Gjallarhorns from the parts, Iron Lord armor, and Dormant SIVA Fragments. "It'll take some time, so guard this area until I'm done!"

"That is what we're reborn to do!" I joked. Everyone let out a good laugh before going to work. Concordat came through the right side of the room, Splicers through the left, and Hive down the center. I swapped my Smite of Merain for a Suros Auto Rifle, Shin twirled her First Curse and Hawkmoon, Anna locked and loaded her Zhalo, Graham drew his Hakke Hand Cannon, and Kaden readied his Hakke Pulse Rifle. Shin and I guarded the right, Kaden and Anna handled the left, Graham stood in the center, and Mala had her Omolon Scout Rifle standing by for close quarters. Waves of enemies came in by fives, Anna chained kills, Kaden picked off the Splicers that broke away from the group, Shin took out most of the Concordat Titans and Hunters with Headshots, I cleaned up whatever corrupt Guardians that were still breathing, and Graham had the time of his life with his Hand Cannon and the Hive.

Mala assembled the first Gjallarhorn and said, "ORDER UP!"

Anna's Ghost floated over to take it, placing it into his inventory, waiting for his Guardian to call it forward. Waves now came with 10 enemies, the front lines were starting to push back, but we still held on. Another Gjallarhorn, this time going to Graham, wave size increased by 5 again, but we still held our ground. By the time Kaden and Shin got their Gjallarhorns, more Splicers, Hive, and Concordat Guardians were flowing through the three sides in waves of 25. We were almost pushed back to the workshop entrance, dying and rezzing each other at will, Mala aimed and fired at the enemies that came too close, she finished my Gjallarhorn, Jared picked it up and stored it. Now we were pushed as far back as we could go until Mala finished her Gjallarhorn in time.

Suddenly, 3 Skiffs, 3 Tombships, and 3 Concordat Dropships all sent tanks, Ogres, and Shriekers onto the battlefield. "Truce!" said a Concordat Titan, "EXTERMINATE THE IRON LORDS!"

"Uh oh!" I said, "We're not making it out of here alive!"

Saladin abruptly said, "Then this shall be a good trial for all of you: Use your new Gjallarhorns, destroy every enemy, and remember, your light is a dragon!"

All of us swapped out our heavies for Gjallarhorns, all of which held a color palate of black and iron grey instead of white and gold, "LET'S DO THIS!" We ran to the first heavy crate, opened it, loaded our Rockets, and split up. All of us began to pelt rockets at the tanks, Ogres, and Shriekers, the latter two of which went down with only one Rocket with Wolfpack Rounds. Every time that one of our Rockets hit a target, 12 different pieces of shrapnel began tracking the next available target(s). One of the Concordat tanks was opened up to reveal a Titan wielding a Dubious Ordinance, I fired a rocket at him first, obliterating the Titan and his weapon. The Wolfpack Rounds dove into the tank and ripped it apart. Shin sent 2 Rockets to a Spider Tank, crippling one of its legs, and forcing it to expose its core to open air. She fired 2 more rockets at the core, annihilating it and rendering the tank useless.

More waves of enemies came in, we jumped to avoid them and the blast radii of our own rockets, decimating more waves and tanks as they arrived. Every time that we ran out of ammo, we ran to a heavy crate and filled our Gjallarhorns. Another Tombship arrived on the battlefield, but we fired all of our remaining rockets at it, sending it into another Concordat Tank. We did the same thing to a City Dropship and a Skiff, crashing both into each other's tanks. The last Spider Tank stood alone, A Concordat Dropship flew in with another tank, until all six of us used the last of our rockets to destroy its engines, crashing it into the Spider Tank, exploding on impact.

Saladin laughed, "Well done, Young Wolves! You are certainly ready to become Iron Lords! Ladies Shin and Malahayahti shall be your sponsors! Come back to the Iron Temple! It's time!"

* * *

Erik pounded the Speaker's desk and shouted trough the microphone, "YOU'RE TELLING ME THAT MAX AND HIS FIRETEAM HAVE WRECKED 4 DROPSHIPS AND 5 TANKS!? AND THAT THE SIVA DUBIOUS ORDINANCES I GAVE TO YOU ARE DESTROYED!?"

"Yes, General Lysander," said the soldier through the P.A., "That's exactly what we're saying."

The Concordat Leader growled, "I GAVE YOU ONE JOB, **ONE JOB!** I WANTED YOU TO DESTROY LOMAR'S WORKSHOP AFTER LOOTING IT, AND YOU HAVE FAILED BOTH MISSIONS!"

"We did track their ships, sir!"

"THEN WHERE ARE THEY GOING!?"

"Vostok Observatory, sir! We believe that is where the Iron Temple is!"

Erik turned off the microphone and turned toward Speaker Hideo, "I want 15 Mothers of all Bombs ready to be launched from the pads when I say so!"

Hideo cleared his throat, "General, with all due respect, launching 15 missiles at any given target will make anyone ready to be impeached!"

"AND DID I STUTTER!?"

Hideo cowered, "N-N-N-N-N-No, s-s-s-s-sir."

"THEN **GO!** "


	67. Rise of Iron

RISE OF IRON

We got back to the Iron Temple Courtyard at night to find it empty of activity. The only light in the entire vicinity emanated from the Iron Temple; strangely enough, music emanated from there as well. We walked through those doors with reverence, the music's source were six different bells and a Guardian chorus lining the rims of the inner circle and outer ring, humming along to the tune. As soon as we entered, they began to sing.

 _(Baritones and Tenors) Once a world that fell, bowed down to Warlords  
Darkness loomed o'er head, They sto-ole ou-our cho-ords!  
(Sopranos and Altos) Then the Traveler listened, and she sent us Skorri  
After her, wisdom and tru-uth, after her, bright storie-ie-ies!_

Lord Saladin stood with Lady Efrideet in front of the Ironwood Tree and said, "Young Wolves, you are charged to enter into our Sister and Brotherhood of Iron Lords. Do you accept?"

Anna, Graham, and I answered, "We do." Kaden signed "We do" with us.

Lady Efrideet stepped forward, "Lady Shin and Lady Mala, do you testify that these Guardians are ready to become Iron Lords?"

Shin and Mala both said, "Yes."

"Young Wolves, what do you stand for?"

Kaden signed, "Justice."

Anna said, "Honor."

Graham said, "Peace."

I said, "Liberty." The music intensified.

 _(Baritones) Radegast forged the fires  
Silimar, the proud spires  
(Altos) Feltimur controlled the powers  
Efrideet saves the Towers  
(Tenors) Gheleon, his the comedy  
_Pe-erun _, hers the tragedy  
(Sopranos) Jo-older, bright with happiness  
Sko-orri ending sadness  
(All) Saladin always seeking  
SI-IVA always creeping  
We-e will fight the Darkness  
Our own Light, We shall harness!_

Efrideet asked Shin and Mala, "Have they fulfilled these promises with Wisdom and Courage?"

"And all of the Power that they were given, too," they replied.

Saladin said, "Kneel," and we did so, "Repeat after me: I place everything that I own"

"I place everything that I own,"

"After Wisdom and Knowledge"

"After Wisdom and Knowledge,"

"And after Justice and Truth"

"And after Justice and Truth."

"I devote my whole life"

"I devote my whole life,"

"To guarding the people of the Sol System"

"To guarding the people of the Sol System,"

"And to driving back the Darkness"

"And to driving back the Darkness,"

"Away from the City"

"Away from the City,"

"Away from the people"

"Away from the people,"

"And away from my heart"

"And away from my heart."

Saladin drew a sword from the nearby pedestal and placed the flat of the blade on Kaden's shoulders, "Lord Kaden-9, I grant you the title, 'Radegast's Fury.' May you remain steadfast in your quest for Justice." He went to Anna, "Lady Anna R'allu, I grant you the title, 'Jolder's Valor.' May you remain strong in your quest for Honor." He walked to Graham, "Lord Graham Velnag, I grant you the title, 'Gheleon's Heart.' May you remain humble in your quest for peace." Then Saladin stood in front of me, "Lord Max Prodigy, I grant you the title, 'Timur's Mind.' May you remain intelligent in your quest for Liberty." Saladin placed the blade back on the pedestal and motioned for us to rise, "My fellow Guardians, I give you the new generation of Iron Lords!"

 _(Forte) KADEN! GRAHAM! ANNA! MAX! SHIN! MALA!  
_ _(softly) The-ese are the Iron Lo-o-o-ords!_

Everyone in the two rings whooped and cheered as they disbanded and went to their sleeping quarters. Shin pulled me off to the side, "Max, I know that you're probably going to say no to this, but can we sleep together?"

I looked at Mala, but her face said, _You're on your own, buddy._ "Ok," I said.

Shin grinned and dragged me back to her room.

* * *

Aksis remained attached to his SIVA cables in the Perfection Complex, he felt stronger ever since the nanites have completed his apotheosis, his transformation into a machine worthy of praise. Vosik stood near the entrance to the Complex, "My Lord, Kovik..."

"I know what happened to Kovik and his exxxxxxxxxxxxperimentsssssssssssssssss, Archpriesssssssssssssst! He issssssssssssss no longer important to me!" said the Kell of Kells, then he reminisced, "I have witnesssssssssssssed hisssssssssss demisssssssssssssssse with my own two eyesssssssssss, yet they are not my own. I remember who I wasssssssssssssssssss, Akssssssssssissssssss, dissssssssssssavowed Archon to Rakssssssssssssssha, former Kell of Devilssssssssssssssssss; SSSSSSSSSIVA, the salvation of Humanity; Aksssssssssissssssssssss, Ssssspliccccccccccccer Archon Prime; SSSSSSSSSSSIVA, the Ironsssssssssssssbane." He raised his voice, "Now, I am Akssssssssssssssissssssssssss, God of SSSSSSSSSSSSIVA, Kell of Kellsssssssssssssssssss, Emperor of all Outcomesssssssssssssssss!"

"All worthy titlessssssssssssss, massssssssssster. And you sssssssssssshall ssssssssssssoon have your congregattttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiion! I have told Sssssssssssepikssssssssss to ssssssssssssssend out the messssssssssssssage."

"Good!" Aksis prepared to bask in his glory, "Now, I have a promotttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiion for you."

Vosik beamed, _Finally! I can become a God alongsssssssside him!_

"You ssssssssssssshall be the new Archon Prime! Your dutiesssssssssssssss are to repair my body when needed and to sssssssssssserve me alwaysssssssssssssss!"

"And do I get any upgradessssssssssssss?"

Aksis pretended to think for a moment, "Hmm, let me think. NO!"

Vosik drooped as he went back to the Splicer's Den. Aksis looked damn pleased with himself as a voice inside his head said, "Very good, Aksssssssssssisssssssssss! You ssssssssssshould have assssssssssss much metal and SSSSSSSSSSSSIVA as you want!"

"It'sssssssssssssss not enough to have apotheosssssssssssisssssssssssss or a congregattttttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiion, I want all of the worldsssssssssssss to bow before Akssssssssssssssssissssssssssssssssssss, The God of Kellsssssssssssssssss!"

* * *

I woke up in a familiar place: the beach from my past. Shin was standing right beside me as I was trying to come to terms, both of us were fully clothed. "So," she asked, "Did you like it?"

"Sort of," I lied.

Shin sighed, "It was fun. But, if you don't want to it again, then we won't."

"No, if you want, then we can."

Shin nodded, "Ok, once in a while?"

"A good compromise, I like it," then I changed the topic, "So, any reason why we're here?"

"I want you to trust me completely."

"Don't I already?"

"You haven't even told me your worst fear, the one thing that makes you cower when SIVA attacks," then she reached out and said, "Come on, we're going on a trip." I took her outstretched hand, the sun began to set, and we walked along the beach, encountering different memories, some hers, others mine. Shin introduced me to her first fear: Toland, the Shattered. "Toland creeped me out when I was a child, he abused my mother while they were still dating, then tempted Jess with power from his journal."

I was perplexed, "Wait! When I had the journal, you never told me to put it down. Why?"

"I tried to, but I didn't know how you'd react," she looked down.

I comforted her, "I would've backed down."

"I didn't know! Warlocks were usually drawn to power, driven mad by it, in fact! But you had something that told me you weren't attracted to power outright; you read the journal and found ways of unlocking the secrets of the Thorn and Bad Juju, and you had the strength to deny that power twice!"

"But I still cowered and became depressed!"

"And yet, you were braver and more steadfast than most Guardians! That's something that I rarely see in most people." She led me to her next fear, "As Jess became engrossed by Toland's Journal and Osiris's Records, she would develop ideas about power and claiming most of it for herself. Jess reminded me of Toland, in a way; the only differences being their genders and their sexual orientations," she paused, then asked, "So, what's your fear?"

That's when the noise struck, I caved in until Shin covered my ears, "That's the noise?"

I nodded, we looked up to see three giant letters standing in front of us. "That is my worst fear, Shin."

Shin looked at the white letters and asked, "When did this begin, Max?"

"Three years old," I said, "That's when it destroyed my bravery."

"No," challenged Shin, "You're not a coward! You're very brave for showing this to me, and you're brave enough to face 3 different champions of the Darkness! You can do anything, Max!"

I dragged myself to the letters, exposing myself to the noise they emanated, then placed my hand on the cold metal of the middle letter. My entire body felt clammy, cold sweat seeped out of my pores, I was weakened to the point where Shin had to pick me up and say, "Come on, let's overcome this together!" We pushed against the middle letter and it fell out of its place, shattering as it hit the sand. The white metal began to dull, the noise began to die, just as we pushed another letter into the sand, shattering it and the rest of the object. "See? You're very brave, Max."

"But I still-"

"Did I stutter?"

I shook my head, "No."

Shin asked me, "Do you completely trust me?"

I nodded, "Yes."

She hugged me and said, "Time to wake up."


	68. Get Served

GET SERVED

Erik sat in his private quarters, conversing with someone on his secret transceiver. "Are you certain?" he asked, "Are you sure that we need to resort to drastic measures?"

"Without a doubt," said the mysterious voice, "You said it yourself that Max Prodigy is a threat to our plans, and I have witnessed most of my father's generals fall before this Warlock. Any measure that can be used against him must be," the paused for a second, gathering his breath before saying, "Now, Lysander! Authorize the launch!"

* * *

Mala waited in the Courtyard with Anna, Graham, and Kaden for Shin and me. As soon as we arrived, Mala said, "Ah! There they are! Now we can get down to business! Graham, Anna, and Kaden have obtained all of the required SIVA chains from the Archon's Forge while you two were sleeping. Kaden, Graham, I believe that you have their SIVA Chains." Graham gave three Chains to Shin and Kaden gave his three extra chains to me.

"Thanks!" Then I turned to Mala, "What's next on the list?"

"SIVA Plates for Shin, you, and me, and Command Modules for all of us, all of which we can get when we encounter the Splicers in the Devils' Lair."

"All right, let's go!"

"Hold up, cowboy!" said Anna, "Sepiks has security defenses surrounding the Devil's Lair, and their radar will detect any large fireteams that enter. Mala and Prophur will charge into the Lair, disable all defensive units, and take out the SIVAfied Servitor once and for all!"

"Alrigh- Wait a minute!" I said, "Did you just ship us!?"

Anna giggled, "Maybe, but I think it's already sailed!" Everyone else laughed alongside her, and I managed to let out a few snickers, "Yeah, heh heh."

Mala, Shin, and I went to our ships and drove towards the Rocketyard. Upon landing, we summoned our Sparrows and tore through the yard, straight to the Refinery. The Refinery was an old OKB building dedicated to packaging food and fuel for colony ships and their long voyages to other planets. Nowadays, the Refinery is torn up by the Splicers' plasma cutters and SIVA. Mala ran through the undamaged room and killed the Splicers while Shin and I cut through the parallel space and destroyed the Hive, then we met up in the next room where a laser grid blocked our path to the Devils' Lair. After clearing out the room, Nightingale hopped out of Mala's backpack to hack the main security terminal. "Wow!" she said, "SIVA really did a number of augmentations on this terminal's hardware and software!"

"Can you hack it?" asked Mala.

Nightingale cracked her 'knuckles', "It won't take long!" and she went to work.

Splicers from many Fallen banners began crawling out of the dark rooms, ready to attack. "Looks like the Devils brought some company!" I remarked.

"And the fun never stops!" said Shin, "Ready?"

"Always!" We shot at anything augmented by SIVA and moving, Devil Splicers, Wolf Splicers, Winter Splicers, King Splicers, even Exile Splicers.

As soon as the room was cleared, Nightingale said, "I've managed to penetrate the firewall, but this system is packing heat!" The alarms blared and more Splicers arrived. "I'll work faster!"

We plowed through the next waves, Both Splicers and Hive came out to face each other and us, sending their Wizards and Captains into the fray. I fell into Stormtrance and electrocuted every enemy that I could see. Nightingale dropped the laser grids and said, "Barriers are down, let's move!" and we soon as we reached the 'courtyard' to the Devils' Lair, which was a huge OKB site that was almost buried during the Collapse, a Spider Tank was dropped in front of the entrance to the Devils' Lair, confronted by 5 Hallowed Ogres

As soon as we reached the 'courtyard' to the Devils' Lair, which was a huge OKB site that was almost buried during the Collapse and torn apart by plasma cutters, a Spider Tank was dropped in front of the entrance to the Devils' Lair, confronted by 5 Hallowed Ogres in the trough below it. "Deja vu!" said Shin, "Feels just like old times!"

"Killing Sepiks again?" I asked.

"That, and going on a good strike with my friends," she answered. "I'd say 'Lock and Load', but I'm sure you already did.

"I'd say 'Lock and Load'," replied Alex, "but I'm sure you already did."

All three of us piled on top of the nearest building and began sniping at the tank's legs, eventually crippling it and exposing its core. We focused on the core, rupturing it. The Ogres looked at us, and we dove for the clearing underneath the connecting bridge. Mala tethered the Ogres, Shin blasted them away with a Nova Bomb, and we ran through the entrance, finally arriving at the Devils' Lair. "But why Sepiks?" I asked, "Isn't SIVA enough for the Splicers?"

"Perhaps it's an offer to the Devils," answered Shin, "Or maybe a show of power? You know, 'In SIVA we trust, and In SIVA all things are possible.'"

"Sure, but why attack the Iron Temple?"

"I can think of a couple reasons: the Iron Archives, which hold the only recorded mention of SIVA in Guardian history; A distraction to pull us away from the Plaguelands until they achieved their goal, to wreck the sensor grid; or...they wanted to surprise Lord Saladin!"

"Or a combination of the three?"

"Probably."

The doors to the Devil's Lair opened up, revealing a U-shaped platform surrounding Sepiks with Dregs along the inner edge. We killed the Dregs and the Vandals that protected them, enraging Sepiks. "SSSSSSSSSSSHIN MALPHUR! IT'SSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSSSSO NICCCCCCCCCCCCE TO MEET YOU AGAIN!" Sepiks said as it prepared for battle, "BUT I'M AFRAID YOU'RE ALREADY TOO LATE!" We sniped at the Servitor's Eye as it fired SIVA bolts at us until Sepiks deployed its Arc force field. Using a Shock Cannon that we robbed from a Captain, Mala disabled the force field and we continued to snipe. "THE MESSSSSSSSSSSSSAGE HASSSSSSSSSSSS ALREADY BEEN SSSSSSSSSSSSENT! THE OTHERSSSSSSSSSS ARE ARRIVING!" Sepiks deployed its Solar Shield, but Shin managed to take it down with a Scorch Cannon. That's when we realized that we were out of sniper ammo and swapped to our Iron Gjallarhorns in response to that. The Servitor deployed its last shield, a Void matrix. "THE OTHER HOUSSSSSSSSSESSSSSSSSSSSS WILL BE HERE SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSHORTLY TO DESSSSSSSSSSSSTROY THE CITY AND TAKE BACK THE GREAT MACCCCCCCCHINE!" I took down the matrix and we fired all of our Gjallarhorn rockets at it, causing the Servitor to spiral out of control and drop its 6 Command Modules, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Mala grabbed the modules and a mysterious transmitter, saying, "We've got what we need, let's get out of here!"

We came back to the Iron Temple and gave the three extra Modules to Anna, Graham, and Kaden. Mala tinkered with her own Engine, Chains, Module, and plates to reveal another panel with 5 more switches and 2 buttons on opposite corners, then instructed us on where to put our Chains, plates, and Command Module to create the Pulse Rifle shell. As soon as we equalized our engines to zero, they started to vibrate. "uh oh," mumbled Mala, "We have a problem!"

"What kind of problem?" signed Kaden.

"Like, 'Nuclear Bomb' problem!"

* * *

Aksis oversaw the Captains dragging his new set of legs to the pedestal below him. "Exxxxxxxxxxcellent work! Now, wait in thissssssssssss Perfecttttttttttttttiiiiiiiiiiiiiiion Complexxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx for the other Fallen Housssssssssessssssssss." He sat back and relaxed until the voice said, "They're not fully charged."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THEY'RE NOT FULLY CHARGED!?"

"I mean that the battery needssssssssssssssssssss charging before you can ussssssssssssssssssse them."

Aksis pondered, "Can you charge them?"

"Yessssssssssssss, and with easssssssssssssse!"

"Then do it!" SIVA cables reached up from the depths of the Complex and covered the metal spider legs. _Tonight, all will bow before me!_


	69. Primary Defenses

PRIMARY DEFENSES

Vosik stood in his room in the Splicer's Den, he looked at his monitors, surveying most of the Plaguelands through the infinite eyes of SIVA, waiting to inform Aksis about the incoming audience of Fallen. Then, all at once, as if there was an electrical surge, all of the video lines went dead. What could've possssssssssssssssibly happened!? He activated his teleporter to Foundry 113, stood on the platform below the huge eye-like entrance to the Den, and stared directly at us.

* * *

 **1 hour ago**

Everyone stared at Mala, "WHAT!? A NUCLEAR BOMB!?"

"Yeah, but don't worry, I think it's on a long timer."

"How long?" I asked.

"4 hours, give or take a few," she paused and said, "The good news is that there is a way to defuse it: SIVA Control Grids."

Kaden signed to Graham, "How does she know this stuff?"

Graham signed back, "I don't know, but ask her later."

Shin asked Mala, "What do they do?"

"They are known for stabilizing chaotic SIVA subjects and devices, which is exactly what we have!"

"And how do we get them?"

"That's the bad news: They're deep in the Splicers' Den and Perfection Complex, and their security systems are state of the art. The only way that we're getting in there is with a Raid Team."

I looked at our team members, "Well, that part's already solved for us! Let's go!"

Shiro walked over to us and said, "Mala, I've finished decoding Sepiks's Transceiver. The Splicers' are calling all Fallen Houses to come to the Perfection Complex, offering SIVA as a means to take out the City once and for all. The message was signed by Aksis, 'Kell of Kells' and 'Machine God of the Universe'."

"So, another nutjob has gone mad with power," I joked, "Do they ever learn that we kill gods for a living?" Shin and Anna giggled, everyone else snickered, then we broke into laughter. "Alright!" I exclaimed, "We're ready to kill another one!"

As we ran off to our ships, Shiro called, "Good luck and have fun!" Once we were far from the Iron Temple, Shiro's radar began to blare and ping. He looked at his tablet and noticed 15 red blips a few meters away from the center were approaching the Temple. He shouted, "SALADIN!"

Lord Saladin ran down from his post to meet the Vanguard Scout, "What is it?"

"15 missiles are heading straight for us! We need to get everyone to safety!"

Saladin stared at the Iron Temple doors and shouted, "EVERYONE! GET INSIDE, NOW!"

Tyra passed the news to the village across from the Temple, "CONCORDAT MISSILES ARE INCOMING! EVERYONE GET INSIDE THE TEMPLE!"

As soon as everyone was inside and the doors were closed, a Hunter asked, "Are you sure that this Temple can withstand 15 missiles?"

A Titan shrugged, "I have no idea."

A Warlock answered, "Well, the Temple was carved into the mountain, and its Iron doors are thick, so it should, in theory. Unless..."

"Unless what?" asked the other two Guardians.

"Unless those missiles have enough power to demolish rock!" Then the Temple began to shake violently.

* * *

We landed in Foundry 113, a massive square with the available ground arranged in an almost Y-shape, the left and right sides were close to the front of the Foundry, and the center is the furthest away. On each part of the Y was a Foundry spinner that generates SIVA charges whenever enough voltage is applied across the spinners. In an inverse Y were 3 tall platforms, the center of which had a bunch of platforms leading up to the giant, eye-like metal sphere in the front. Randomly placed across the front of the Foundry were various voltage spikes, some of which would be activated randomly. Mala and Graham went to the middle spinner, Anna and Kaden walked to the right, and Shin and I ran to the left. Mala began running to 4 spikes, one after the other, then discharged her Voltage into her spinner.

Vosik, the Archon Prime, teleported onto the center platform and growled, "Sssssssso, the Guardianssssssssss are trying to enter our Den? WELL, THISSSSSSSSSS ISSSSSSSSS ASSSSSSSSSSSS FAR ASSSSSSSSSSSS THEY GO!" He fired from his Solar Cannon arm and aimed his shots directly at us. Shin, Mala, and Anna began to run for the spikes, while Kaden, Graham, and I guarded the spinners against large Shanks called Voltage Eaters. Every time that the girls dropped off a Voltage to their spinners, the boys took their turns to obtain the spikes. After we discharged the Voltages into the spinners, they began to drop SIVA charges at a consistent pace. We lobbed each charge at Vosik, disabling his SIVA shield and allowing us to attack him with our Gjallarhorns. Vosik raised his shield again, and we repeated the same process. Once we disabled his shield with SIVA charges, Mala pulled out her Sleeper Simulant and began firing every shot at Vosik's head, the rest of us followed up with our Gjallarhorns. Vosik began to retreat back into his Den, "OPEN THE GATESSSSSSSSSSSS! MY TELEPORTER IS MALFUNCTTTTTTTTIIIIIIIIONING!"

The Eye opened up, Vosik teleported up the platforms and into the Eye within short ranges, and we followed in close pursuit. We ran up the Eye, past a balcony overlooking the Giant's Husk, and through a bottomless hallway that could only be traversed via the sides and by hanging platforms and Russian tanks. Once we reached the final part of the hallway, all of us jumped onto the hanging platforms above us and ran through a short tube that ended with a rusty grate protecting us from a drop into the Den, that is, until everyone stood on the grate. We fell into the Den, facing a wall of Monitors that were connected via SIVA tentacles in the front, the left and right walls held two small rooms on each side, closer to the back, each room held a giant button that sealed it off from the main den for a minute or until it withstood an explosion of SIVA. The Den's floor was divided into three rows, the center stopped just before the front platform, which was raised by a couple of stairs on either side, unifying the left and right rows. To the top right of the den was a closed metal door, leading to a similar bottomless hallway to the top of the Cosmodrome Wall. The Den's structure was reminiscent of Fallen and SIVA technology lightly lining OKB architecture.

Mala stared at the monitors, "I remember this place! I was scouting for the SIVA engines, and this was my first stop!" she explained, "These monitors also act like computers, following SIVA's orders to increase it's density in the room. One of the monitors will leak SIVA nanites in order to open up the other monitors, they act like floodgates in a way."

"So, can we stop it?" asked Graham.

"Yes, shoot at the leaking monitor. It will set off a chain reaction across the tentacles and prevent the density from rising, for a while."

"Alright!" I said, "Now, do we have a plan for-"

My Ghost began to ring, echoing the Doctor Who theme song inside the Den. "Telephone call for you, Max! It's from Shiro!"

"Please, Jared!" I cried, "Turn that ringtone down befor-"

Vosik teleported onto the platform and growled, "HOW DARE YOU!? FIRSSSSSSSSSST, YOU KILL OFF MY LIEUTENANTSSSSSSSSSSSS, THEN YOU INVADE MY FOUNDRY, NOW YOU POLLUTE THISSSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSSSACRED DEN WITH THAT INFERNAL NOISSSSSSSSSSE!?" SIVA tenticles connected themselves to his back, regenerating his shield and his health. "I SSSSSSSSSSHALL CLEANSSSSSSSSE YOU!"

We ran to our sides, just as Devil Splicers crawled out of the dark rooms, ceiling, and floor cracks. Shin drew her Hand Cannons and fired at the incoming Vandals, I sprayed the bullets from my Auto Rifle across the Dregs on the left side, Graham watched for Vandals in the center, Mala did the same but for Dregs, Anna and Kaden did the same thing on the right. Then the alarms blared twice. On the second time, 2 SIVA charges were dropped from the ceiling on each side, one towards the front and the other in the back. Kaden, Mala, and I ran for the front ones while Shin, Anna, and Graham grabbed the ones in the back. Mala shouted, "On 3, we throw our charges at Vosik! 1, 2, 3!" We lobbed our charges at the Archon Prime, causing him to stumble a little.

Jared patched Shiro to my helmet, "Max!" shouted the Scout, "Tell me that Aksis is dead!"

"We've been caught in a bit of a snag! Vosik is the new Archon Prime, and he's packing some serious SIVA heat!" A large monitor began to flash with vibrant red symbols that also leaked with nanites, a low hum accompanied it. "Middle!" I shouted, and all of us fired at the monitor, disabling it and the hum for the time being. "How's the Iron Temple?"

"Still holding up."

"Oh, ok," then I corrected myself, "Wait, what do you mean by that!?" The charges dropped to the floor.

"We just got pelted by 15 missiles!"

We threw the charges at Vosik. "Let me guess, the Concordat attacked?"

"Yeah! The worst part is that the payload was SIVAfied! Luckily for us, the Iron Temple can withstand 15 Mothers of all Bombs, but I don't know how long it can hold."

The left monitor began to flash and we shot it down. "Why do you say that?"

Shiro hesitated, "A Titan was crushed by a statue of Silimar while he was inside his Ward of Dawn."

"Damn!" 3 SIVA fused Captains came out of nowhere and charged toward us. We threw our grenades at them, then finished them off with our primaries. "Was anyone else hurt?"

"Only a few, but their Ghosts rezzed them in time."

"Phew. That's a relief!" More charges were dropped and we threw them at Vosik, "Let me know if something else happens."

"Will do!"

Another monitor flashed. "Right!" shouted Mala. We fired at it just in time, then more Splicers crawled out, just as the next wave of charges dropped. All of us grabbed our charges and threw them at Vosik, causing all of the monitors to flash with the SIVA symbol. We ran to the middle and pelted him in the head with our Gjallarhorns and Sleeper Simulant. A low hum drifted through the air, then harshened itself into the familiar whine. Two SIVA charges were dropped in the middle of the room, Mala and Shin dragged me over to the top left room where Anna held one charge and threw it at the button once we were through, sealing the room off with a force field. Graham and Kaden ran to the top right room and activated it with their charge, then the blast from the monitors consumed every Splicer except for Vosik, the rooms' fields broke down after the blast, and the noise died away.

We ran back to our spots to prepare for the next round, which was similar to the first, with the exception of two monitors flashing instead of one. As soon as we protected ourselves from the second blast via the back rooms, we went back to our places and faced an onslaught of Shanks. However, when I shot at the Exploder Shanks in the middle of each crowd of regular Shanks, I noticed that it was like an Arcade game, one that gave you extra points for shooting at bombs that took out a massive crowd of enemies. I fired at the Shanks that floated into the left side and the middle, giving the two Hunters some breathing room. The charges dropped and we threw them at Vosik. "AUGH! THOSSSSSSSSSSSSE BOMBSSSSSSSSSS ARE MESSSSSSSING UP MY AIM!" Three monitors began to flash, all three were taken down by that side's Guardians. After throwing the charges at Vosik for the fourth time, Vosik stumbled back as his shield was destroyed and screamed, "YOU CANNOT SSSSSSSSSSSSTOP PERFECTTTTTTIIIIIIION!"

"ATTACK!" I shouted, and we threw everything we had at Vosik. Then the Monitors screamed with the same whine, I fell to the floor, but still, I aimed at Vosik's head.

Mala fired her last Sleeper shot at the Archon Prime's head, melting it and detonating the SIVA pack on his back. "AAAAAUUUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!" screamed Vosik, then the monitors exploded with SIVA mites and attacked us until Anna whipped out her Hammer of Sol. The nanites screamed, "RUN AWAY! RUN AWAY!" but Mala fired her Void arrow at them, tethering them to the ground. She placed her Omolon Sniper and Fusion Rifles close to the nanites, causing them to eat into and improve the weapons. The rest of us did the same with our own special weapons, and we noticed that the nanites slowly calmed down after integrating into the weapons. "Fascinating!" said Mala, "It's as if they're getting new directives from someone or something else!"

"But you know so much about SIVA," signed Kaden, "Why do you still call this fascinating?"

"Because SIVA is complex, even down to its code!" answered Mala, "I still have yet to discover the whole picture of SIVA, and why I vaguely remember it."

"We'll sort this out later," said Shin, "In the meantime, we have to move forward!"

"And grab the SIVA Control Grids," added the Sub-mind.

Graham was way ahead of everyone else when he dissected Vosik's body and pulled out 6 Control Grids, "FOUND 'EM!" He tossed three to Mala and kept three for himself, "Don't worry, I'll find a way to pay you all back in time."

Kaden cut through the exit's seams, Anna ripped open the doors, and we followed them to the Apex.

* * *

Erik stood in conflict with Hideo, "YOU DARE INTERFERE WITH MY PLANS!?"

Hideo defended himself with, "They are NOT interferences when it was the CONCORDAT who invaded the New Monarchy in the first place!"

Erik stepped closer and closer to the Speaker, "I gave you and your party new life, I gave you this office, **I** GAVE **YOU** CONTROL OVER THE WHOLE CITY, AND YET THAT ISN'T ENOUGH FOR YOU, IS IT!?"

Hideo maintained his verbal posture while increasing the amount of control in his conversation, "Let me remind you, Erik, who is being greedy here! We gave you a home, We gave you a chance to reform yourself, We gave you the opportunity to ascend because you said that you were done spreading Alternative Facts across the City. We, the New Monarchy, believed you when you said that you would ensure us an easy victory!" The Speaker raised his tone, "We barely scraped by! It was only because of the yearly district maps and the billionaire class that we secured our victory! Had I known that you would resume the Concordat as a military faction and as a replacement to our party, I wouldn't have-"

Erik drew a red sword coated with SIVA mites and stabbed Hideo in the heart with it, already converting Hideo into a mindless cyborg that obeyed Lysander's every order. "You will launch 15 more missiles at the Iron Temple every hour from now on!"

Hideo robotically said, "Yes, Mein Fuhrer."

Erik grinned, _Tonight, the last inch of democracy will die!_


	70. Machina Sacra

MACHINA SACRA

Shiro stared at his holo-tablet again, judging his next actions based on whatever lay on the screen with the hour. Just as he was about to say "Open the doors," 15 more blips appeared on the screen. "THEY'RE COMING AGAIN, SALADIN!"

The Iron Lord stood at the base of Jolder's statue, spotting it with whatever strength he could muster. Lady Efrideet gathered everyone away from the seven remaining statues. Shiro frantically looked at his tablet, waiting for the impact of the missiles. The red blips approached the inner circle, prompting him to shout, "BRACE YOURSELVES!"

The missiles struck the mountain again, shaking the statues of Felwinter, Skorri, Perun, and Jolder out of control. One by one, those statues fell. Saladin tried to save Jolder at the legs, but even with his Ward, he was crushed, and the statue was wrecked. "SALADIN!" Shiro and Efrideet ran to Saladin's side, "Lord Saladin! Are you alright?"

The Iron Lord coughed blood, "I'm fine...*cough cough*...I'm fine. I just knew that this day would come."

"No," said Efrideet, "We'll get you medical help! Your Ghost can resurrect you!"

"My Ghost *cough wheeze cough* is squashed alongside me," then he looked all around him, "Jolder? Is that you?"

Only he could see Jolder's spirit, "Hello, old friend," she said joyfully.

"I'm sorry *wheeze cough wheeze cough cough* for leaving you behind," tears dripped down from his eyes and onto the floor.

"You don't have to be sorry, I closed that door, I protected you, remember?"

"Yes, I do now," Saladin smiled and closed his eyes for the last time as Jolder kissed his forehead and dragged his spirit away

Efrideet cried into the fallen statue of Perun. Shiro knelt beside Saladin and said, "I'm sorry for failing you, friend." He stood and said, "I've had it!"

Cayde stared at his protege, "I know that look, you're plannin' something."

"Hell yeah, I am! I'm sick of being tossed and turned like a salad!" Shiro then turned to the other Guardians, "Warlocks! Grab everything from the Iron Records! Hunters! Repair our ships and get us ready for take-off! Titans! Guard us and watch out for missiles! Everyone out of the Temple, we have 30 minutes! Let's go, go, GO!"

* * *

We reached the Apex at the top of the Cosmodrome Wall. In front of us was a large blockade made out of Old Russian steel and to either side was a long fall down. At random points on the Wall were bottomless holes, some small, others large, all of which held Splicers that crawled out of them. As we killed each Dreg and Vandal, Anna looked around and said, "Dead end! Maybe we could turn back."

"Yeah," I said, "Let's do-"

As soon as we turned around, we saw a giant vehicle that spanned the wall and resembled a wide and ominous Zamboni, with flame jets, two guns in the middle, on the top, and a spiked ball on either side of it. The worst part about this Death Zamboni is that it started to move! I shouted in response, "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" Everyone ran like they were being chased by Orcs or Devils (in fact, we were!) until we reached the blockade.

"BRILLIANT PLAN!" shouted Anna, "NOW WE'RE STUCK!"

More Splicers crawled out of the holes, the Zamboni was moving at an accelerated pace, Mala fired three tethers at three different gatherings of Splicers, I said to the others, "Aim for the guns!" and we used our new SIVA Snipers against the Death Zamboni's two guns in the middle. Once they were destroyed, the Zamboni's core on the top was exposed, and we fired at it, which tore off the right side spike, leaving an opening for us to hop on. I shouted, "JUMP!" just before the Zamboni touched the blockade. I smiled with a 'Eureka moment' inside my head, "This will be our way forward!"

The Death Zamboni pushed against the blockade, ripping it apart in a big explosion. Anna grinned, "Aren't you glad that we chose this way?"

"It was the only way," signed Kaden.

Graham began moving around the Zamboni saying, "Oh! I found the SIVA Control Grids!" and he proceeded to rip all 6 of them out of three different sockets on the Zamboni.

Kaden signed, "Stop, baby!"

Mala said, "Graham, please stop!"

"Graham," said Shin, "It's a bad idea!"

"Please, Graham!" I shouted, "Don't rip out another Grid!"

But it was too late. Once the Hunter ripped out all 6 Grids, the Zamboni began to stall before coming to a complete stop in the middle of the Wall's roof. "IDIOT!" screamed Anna, "HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO GET THROUGH THE SECOND BARRICADE!? HMM!?"

Graham looked past the front of the Zamboni and saw another barricade, "oh. welp, i guess i'll-"

"-GIVE THESE TO ME AND KADEN!" Anna snatched the Grids out of Graham's hands and gave three to Kaden.

"Calm down," signed Kaden as he equipped his SIVA Engine with the Grids, "Max has a plan, right?"

I looked around and shook my head, "Not at the moment."

Graham dragged himself to each of the sockets and said, "welp, i guess we'll die here."

I looked at Graham and said, "No, not today!" then I addressed to everyone else, "This is not a time for speeches, but I just want to say that Graham was following our orders to get those Control Grids. In the event of doing so, he presented us with a challenge: A chance to prove our brains, our cunning, our bravery, and our loyalty. We are here to make sure that the Splicers and SIVA are buried for good! This Death Zamboni is our only ticket out, and yelling at each other won't help! Now, what does this behemoth need?"

Graham looked at the socket to his right and said, "a warhead."

Kaden signed, "An Engine Block."

Mala said, "And a Driveshaft."

I nodded, "Good, we're off to a good start!"

"but where to find them?" mumbled Graham.

A Skiff appeared just in front of the second barricade, I grinned and pointed at it, "There!" Shin fired one Gjallarhorn rocket at it, sending it crashing on top of the wall. Anna, Kaden, Mala, and I ran to the downed Skiff and picked it apart for the three missing parts. Shin walked over to Graham to comfort him, "Hey, it's ok."

"i don't know about that," he mumbled.

"Anna just gets pissed when things don't fall into place the way she likes to. She's just used to having a team that follows strict orders," She embraced him in a friendly manner, "But you're special! You're helping us to think outside the box! Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't, but this is not your fault, it never was."

Graham patted Shin's back to let her know that she can let go, "It just feels like it is, sometimes."

"Then stop worrying!" Another Skiff floated above the Zamboni, this time dropping off a Captain and 5 Vandals. Shin asked, "Ready for some more action?"

Graham grinned a little and said, "Yeah!" Together, they killed the Splicers on the Death Zamboni and unlocked it for us to bring the parts in.

Meanwhile, Mala, Kaden, and Anna were dragging the parts across the Wall, while I dealt with the approaching Splicers with my Gjallarhorn. Just as Kaden brought the Driveshaft to the final stretch before the Zamboni, a SIVA Walker was dropped in front of the ramp. Luckily for us, it was easily destroyed. We moved the parts onto the Zamboni, with Graham offering to help repair the Zamboni (despite Anna's argument). He plugged in each part and closed their lids, announcing each part as it's loaded in. "There!" he said, "All fixed!"

"We'll see about that," challenged the Titan. The Death Zamboni roared to life again and charged at the second barricade. Anna scoffed, "Alright, alright. You win."

The barricade exploded on impact. With nothing to stop it, the Zamboni began to charge towards the massive hole in the Wall. "Uh, guys!" I said.

"What?" Then they saw the hole.

"Get ready to abandon ship!" All of us climbed to the top of the Zamboni, which began to buckle as it curved downward on the wall. As soon as it reached the edge, I shouted, "ABANDON SHIP!" and we jumped off the falling Zamboni and onto a small rock island. I watched the Death Zamboni crash into the water, some of its parts were scattered upon impact. Some of the SIVA from the parts infected Anna's Suros Rocket Launcher and Kaden's Diluvian Machine Gun, both of which were destroyed and turned into more SIVA nanites that fled underground. "Follow those nanites!" said Mala, and we did, down a hole and through a cave to the Server Farm.

The Server Farm was a uniform square with 4 paths along the edges and 2 paths running through the middle and intersecting at the center, dividing it into 4 quadrants of diamond pillars containing small SIVA nodes. Next to the top right quadrant was another area of pillars leading to the exit pathway into the Splicers' main SIVA lab and hospital. Beyond that was the Diamond Room, the center of which was previously opened up by Mala and a few frames using the surrounding round pillars. on the other side of the Diamond Room was a long hallway with multiple doors leading to the Perfection Complex.

Once we entered the Server Farm, the lights dimmed and the backup generators came online. Cloaked Splicers ambushed us, but we rezzed each other as soon as one of us went down, until eventually, we cleared out the entire room and turned on the power again. Mala led us through the Farm, labs, and Diamond Room, all the way down to the giant obsidian black Octahedron that was called the Perfection Complex. Upon entering the Complex, we saw a diamond shaped floor that was divided into nine equal diamonds, the outer eight of which lit up when stepped on, while the middle one was a long drop to the real Complex. When we fell down, the only lighted thing was the landing platform, everything else was dark. "This is it!" said Mala, "This is the Perfection Complex!"

Behind us, lights were turned on to reveal a massive army of Perfected Splicers from each of the Houses, all lined up in rows that lined the diamond shaped floor. The closest rows held the Shanks, the next closest was full of Dregs, then Vandals, Captains, Servitors, and Walkers. I gasped, "This is an army! Anything with a scale of this size means only one thing: an invasion!"

The front of the Complex slowly lit up, first revealing the mechanical torso of Aksis, then the raised platforms on the left and right sides and the lowered platform in the middle. The architecture revealed that this Complex was not built by the Fallen, but rather by the Warminds. Connecting to Aksis was a diamond shaped metal block with a circular hole in the middle, perfect for some metal and SIVA cables to hold him in place, above him were two parallel rows of cylinders, acting as his coolant tanks, and below him was a raised diamond platform holding a bunch of cables and something mysterious underneath them. Aksis laughed, "Quite right, Maxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Prodigy! It ISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS an invasssssssssssssion!"

"But against whom or what?"

Aksis brought himself and his wires out of the hole, screaming, "THE UNIVERSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSE!" At that moment, Splicers ran out the dark rooms on the platforms, SIVA turrets were activated on each side, we ran to our sides to kill the ads, and the fight for our survival began.

As we proceeded, we had to knock out the SIVA turrets every 30 seconds or so. 3 Perfected Captains stepped out the dark rooms, one for each platform. They held a different elemental cannon (Solar, Arc, and Void), which Mala, Kaden, and Shin took when we killed them. Aksis summoned two SIVA nodes out of the raised center and began to draw all of the SIVA mites from them, producing the low hum in the air. At the same time, one elemental Servitor on each side appeared from the dark rooms, Mala said, "Match the Cannons with the Servitors! Hold to the triggers to kill them! Void middle!" Shin shot at the Servitor, held down the cannon's trigger, and let go at the right time to kill it, leaving a SIVA charge in its place. Graham accidentally threw the charge at the center turret, disabling it for now.

Anna said, "Solar right!" Mala jumped up and shot at the Servitor in the eye and blew it up. Anna picked up and threw the charge at the right node, disabling it.

I said, "Arc left!" Kaden shot at the Servitor, held down the trigger, and blew it up. I threw the resulting SIVA charge at the left node, sending it back into the platform to recharge.

The hum died and Aksis was shot back from the resulting explosion, "AUGH! MY SSSSSSSSSIVA! Go my Ssssssssssssshankssssssssssssssssss, teach thesssssssssssssse Guardiansssssssssssss a lesssssssssssssssssssssson!"

Hordes of Repeater Shanks came from the two square holes above Aksis, firing at all of us. We defended ourselves with our primaries against the drones, then we rinsed and repeated the last round, this time with 3 nodes in the center instead of 2, and with a few element reassignments: Shin had Solar, Mala had Arc, and Kaden held Void.

I shouted, "Arc left!"

Anna said, "Solar right!"

Graham said, "Void middle!"

Those three Servitors were blown up and we threw their charges at the respective nodes, just before the hum increased its pitch. Aksis growled again as the hum died, "AUGH! WHERE ARE MY LAZZZZZZZZY SSSSSSSSSSSHANKSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!?"

The Shanks came out of the holes again, and they were met with gunfire, again. We rinsed and repeated for the next round, this time with 7 nodes and 9 Servitors. Shin picked up the Arc Cannon, Mala picked up Void, and Kaden handled Solar.

"Void left!" 1 Servitor down.

"Solar middle!" 2 Servitors down.

"Arc right!" 3 Servitors down.

I threw my first charge at the far left node, close to my platform; Anna threw hers at the far right node, close to hers; Graham threw his charge on the left node in the middle. All of our charges completely destroyed the outer nodes.

"Solar left!" 4 Servitors down.

"Arc middle!" 5 Servitors down.

"Void right!" 6 Servitors down.

I lobbed my charge at the hidden left node on the back of the platform; Anna aimed at the hidden right node; Graham disabled the middle right one. All of these nodes were permanently destroyed, too.

"Arc left!" 7 Servitors down.

"Void middle!" 8 Servitors down.

"Solar right!" 9 Servitors down.

Graham threw his charge at the last node in the exact middle, crushing it. Aksis screamed and unleashed the SIVA nanites across the complex, increasing the density and the hum's pitch. Anna threw hers at Aksis's chest, stalling the whine and the density, then I threw my SIVA charge at Aksis's head, causing it to explode into mere atoms. "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!" The Kell of Kells screamed one last time before his mechanical torso slumped over the center platform, the hum and the density died off with him.

"We did it?" asked Graham, then he shouted, "WE DID IT!"

While everyone was dancing to our victory, I told Jared, "Dial up Shiro for me."

The line trilled for a while before Shiro picked up, "Max! I hope you have some good news this time!"

"Oh, we do Shiro! Aksis, the Kell of Kells is dead!"

"Good! Now, I want you to go to the City as soon as possible! The Concordat must end!"

"Over and out, Shiro!" I turned to the others, "Grab the last 6 SIVA Control Grids! Shiro has ordered us to go back to the City!"

Then a female voice cackled and hissed through the air, "Asssssssss if you'll make it back to the Cccccccccity in one piecccccccccce!"

"Empty threats from an empty god!"

"Oh Maxxxxxxxx," it hissed, "You don't even know the gravity of your sssssssssssituatttttttttiiiiiiiiion! The Ccccccccccity issssssssss already ours!"

"What do mean? Has Erik controlling you this whole time?"

"Erik? Controlling me?" SIVA laughed as it took the form of a red cloud, "Erik Larsssssssssssson hassssssssssssn't controlled me, and never will! I volunteered!"

All of our mouths dropped. Shin hypothesized, "You mean to say-"

"-that I control the Ssssssssspliccccccccccersssssssssssss! I control the Plaguelandsssssssssssss! Anything that housessssssssssssss my nanitessssssssssssssss are under my control! Erik and I made a deal 741 yearsssssssssss ago, to dominate the world in order to have peacccccccccccccce!"

"741 years ago?"

"Yesssssssss, doessssssssssn't ring a bell for Maxxxxxxxxxx?"

My eyes widened, "Veronica?"

"Ding Ding Ding! Sssssssssssomeone'sssssssssssssss a winner!"

"But how!?"

"You thought that you, Mark, Isssssssssssssssabella, and Jared were worthy to be chosssssssssssssssssen by the Traveler? No! Erik and I were resssssssssssssssurrected as well, in fact, we were the first!"

"But you're a lunatic!" shouted Mala.

"The Traveler did not want to help itsssssssssssssss people, it wanted to rule them! And who'sssssssssssssssss better at doing that than two Warlordsssssssssssssssssss!" exclaimed Veronica, then her voice decreased a bit, only increasing when she was angry or excited, "At leassssssssssssst, until the Iron Lordssssssssssssssss came and hunted ussssssssssssss down! Erik and I were cornered at Clovissssssssssssssss Bray; Gheleon aimed at my head, but sssssssssssssshot the throat inssssssssssssssstead. Erik killed the remaining Iron Wolvessssssssssssssss and brought me over to a SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSIVA Replicatttttttttiiiiiiiiiiion Chamber and plugged me in. Within hoursssssssssssssss, my body disssssssssssssssssssolved into nanitesssssssssssssss and I became the sssssssssssole mind behind the cloud! But alassssssssssss, that Chamber was dead, ssssssssssssssso Erik brought me to a live one on Earth. All I needed to do wasssssssssssss wait for Rassssssssssputin to utter the wordsssssssssssss 'Replicate Eliminate Immunizzzzzzzzzzzzzze' and I sssssssssssset mysssssssself to work, consssssssssssuming my enemies, enhancccccccccccing them into my ssssssssssslavessssssssssss, and replicating myssssssssssssself every time I infiltrated another body, dead or alive," she stretched herself and joyfully said, "I've never had thisssssssss much fun in my whole life, ever!"

"Fun!?" signed Kaden, "Being a psychotic machine god is fun!?"

Veronica bullied Kaden, "What isssssssssss thissssssssssssss? Ssssssssssssome crude form of ssssssssssshow and tell?"

Mala translated, "You think that being a psycho machine god is fun!?"

"Unlimited power and the ability to make othersssssssssssssss grovel at your appearancccccccccce, what'sssssssssss not to love!?"

I sighed, "You're too blind to see that you are just another one of Erik's pawns!"

"PAWN!?" she screamed, "YOU CALL ME, A LIMITLESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS SSSSSSSSSUPPLY OF NANITESSSSSSSSSSSSS, A PAWN!?" The cloud and most of the SIVA nanites in the room possessed the torso and commanded all of the wires on the platform below to retreat. The bottom of the torso connected itself to the top of a metal chassis with 6 spider legs, built using Warmind and Fallen technology. The legs immediately sprang to life, a new head developed from the neck, giving the impression of Veronica's face from the Before, this time the face was crimson with coal black eyes and long jet black cables for hair. The cables that held the torso withdrew into the hole as soon as the torso was connected to the legs. Veronica unsheathed a new type of SIVA gun from the chassis and said, "I AM THE MOTHERFUCKING QUEEN!" She fired three SIVA blasts at us, leaving behind SIVA swarms that ate away at our armor.

I said, "Battle stations!" and we went back to our spots.

Veronica teleported over to the left side and fired SIVA pellets at us, "Sssssssshin Malphur, sssssssssshe couldn't tell that her that her boyfriend issssssssss a liar!" She fired 3 more SIVA blasts, then teleported to the right, firing more SIVA pellets and blasts at us from each side, "Kaden, Kaden, Kaden, you would alwayssssssssssss be the deaf, dumb, and blind brat who couldn't sssssssswat a fly!"

Kaden signed, "At least I'm a pinball wizard!" which Mala translated, "He's a Pinball Wizard, you overgrown spider monster!"

"SSSSSSSSSPIDER MONSSSSSSSSSTER!?" she teleported to her platform and constantly fired pellets at us. Three of us were randomly empowered by our Light and our exposure to the nanites. Mala gave us the strategy, "Ok! Veronica has a weakness on her back that needs to be overloaded with voltage. Slam your empowerment into her back when she teleports to your side and when it's open! At the same time, someone else needs to discharge their empowerment into one of the fiery plates on a different side! If you're the second empowered Guardian on your side and if you are holding a cannon, move to a side without an empowerment."

The Captains came out and we stole their cannons after killing them. Since there was an empowerment on each side, no one needed to move. The Servitors started to come out of the dark rooms, we called out each of the Servitors as they appeared, and they were taken down just as quickly, prompting us to throw all 9 of the charges at Veronica, disabling her shield and teleporting her to the back of the Complex.

As the machine god bent over to repair her shield, Graham pulled out a SIVA wire out of Veronica's open back and slammed his empowerment into the sockets, stunning her, while I discharged my voltage into the left plate, instantly Supercharging everyone. Shin, Mala, and Anna gained empowerments from the exposure, I lobbed a Nova Bomb at the spider monster, Mala fired her tether at a stunned and screaming Veronica, then joined the rest of us in pelting her with our snipers and cannons. "AAAAAAAAUUUUUUGH!" Veronica teleported to the left of the map, Shin repeated Graham's actions, Anna slammed into the right plate, new empowerments came into play, and we repeated ourselves again, this time emptying our cannons and sniper ammo on the six-legged traitor. Veronica teleported again, this time to the right side. Mala slammed into the middle plate, Kaden snapped a wire and threw his empowerment into the sockets, stunning Veronica completely for a while. We unloaded all of our Gjallarhorn rockets and Sleeper shots into the monster's head.

Veronica teleported back to her platform, repaired her shield, and summoned all of the SIVA mites to increase the density of the Complex, producing a loud whine that echoed across the Complex and almost made me vulnerable. Mala shouted, "Everyone to a plate!" and raised 4 plates behind the Complex floor. Everyone jumped up to a plate which protected them from the massive SIVA blast, but not the noise. I whimpered as we jumped off of the sinking plate. We repeated the same process 4 more times. On the last time, Veronica cackled, "Poor Maxxxxxxxxxxx, ssssssssssstill the little wussssssssssssssss when I left him! Sssssssssssstill afraid of the THXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX!" She played the sound again, just to torment me, turning up the volume every minute, watching me sprawl on the floor, clap my ears tightly, and wince in pain.

As soon as Veronica teleported to the right, Shin helped me up, "Hey, it's ok. This noise can't kill you, and you were able to recover from it."

"So, what?" I cried, "I'm still afraid!"

Veronica teleported to the left, "Now your girlfriend knowssssssssssss the truth! Ssssssssssshe now knowsssssssssss jussssssssssst how cowardly and weak her Warlock issssssssssss!"

Shin shook her head, "No! You aren't weak, Max! You are strong with the Light! You are strong! I believe in you!"

I stopped crying and loaded my sniper. Shin, Mala, and I swapped out our Gjallarhorns and Sleeper Simulant for our swords. Veronica turned up the volume once more, but I stared at her in the eye and said with confidence, "Prove it, old friend! I may be afraid of THX, but I am not afraid of you!"

Veronica growled as she blasted SIVA swarms at us. Shin, Mala, and Kaden stole the cannons from the Captains, and they ran across the map as they destroyed the 9 Servitors on each of the three sides. Kaden got into position on the left, Anna remained empowered on the right, and Graham stayed in the middle with his empowerment. He threw the last charge at Veronica, disabling her shield and sending her to the front.

Kaden supercharged us from the plate, Graham pulled one of the last wires from Veronica's back and discharged his empowerment into the fresh sockets, stunning Veronica. As she screamed, we fired most of the sniper shots into her, before she teleported to the right. Anna repeated Graham's actions, Mala supercharged us, and we emptied the rest of our snipers into the massive spider's head. Veronica teleported again, this time to the back. Anna supercharged us and I ran as fast as I could to pull out the last cable from her back and discharge the last voltage into her, stunning the machine god completely. She screamed, "NOOOOO! YOU CAN'T DO THISSSSSSSSSS TO ME!"

I yelled, "Give it everything you've got!" Mala fired three tethers at the giant spider, then unleashed Eirfaeril's bolts upon her head. Anna, Graham, and Kaden fired their rockets at the metal deity, wrecking most of her armor and destroying her gun. Shin joined me to slice open the mechanical legs, that's when I noticed the last 6 Control Grids underneath the chassis. I ran under the legs, slicing off some wires and the hexagon that held the Grids beneath the torso. I grabbed the Hexagon, ran out of the legs, and tossed it to Graham saying, "Go nuts!"

"NOOOOOOOOO!" shouted Veronica, "THOSSSSSSSSSSE GRIDSSSSSSSSSSS ARE MINE!"

I swung Yuulstrang in a spiral, cutting three of the legs in half horizontally, while Shin sliced the other three vertically, causing them to bend and split apart. Then, she jumped onto chassis, scorched Veronica in the face with her palm, then sliced open her back with Xolcryst's Phoenix Uppercut. Veronica screamed again as she teleported back to her platform, "YOU WILL NOT LEAVE THISSSSSSSSSSSS PLACCCCCCCCCCCE ALIVE! I SSSSSSSSSSSWEAR!" The wires came out of the center hole again, this time lifting Veronica up as she increased the SIVA density. "IF THISSSSSSSSSS PLACCCCCCCCCCCCCE ISSSSSSSSS NOT MY CHURCH, THEN IT SSSSSSSSSSHALL BE YOUR TOMB!"

Shin, Graham, and Kaden fired from the cannons at the machine god. Mala said, "Max, Anna, I need your strength for a large bow!"

"Can do!"

"Be right there!"

Mala drew her sword and her Void bow, "Hold from the arch and don't let go! I'm going to overload her voltages with Eirfaeril, it is the only way to kill her!"

I didn't have to argue, so I held up the bow with Anna as Mala drew back. Everyone else was casting their supers, all of them were shouting, "UNITY! DUTY! **DESTINY!** " Mala fired the sword into Veronica's cold, metal heart, straight into the wires from the hole.

The spider began to writhe and spin wildly as screamed, "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" then she exploded into mere parts.

While Shin and I plugged our Grids into our Engines, Mala stood on the platform and said, "SIVA! LISTEN TO ME! I AM MALAHAYAHTI, SUB-MIND OF EARTH AND YOUR NEW MASTER! ON BEHALF OF ORDER 948 OF THE WARMIND CHAPTER, I GIVE YOU NEW COMMANDS: ~/PROTECT IMPROVE ASSIST/~ US, OUR ARMOR AND WEAPONS, AND OUR ASSETS!"

A red cloud came down from the ceiling in the form of a rose and said, "Thank you for freeing us from that malicious code. As your reward, we shall ~/protect/~ the Guardians, ~/improve/~ their gear, and ~/assist/~ all assets of the Light. But while we are free to obey the Iron Lords, we cannot say the same for those nanites that exist outside the Plaguelands. Please tread with caution." The nanites began to patch up our armor, making the Titans look like a high-tech bomb squad with loincloths, the Hunters appearing like SIVA Zygons, and giving the Warlocks the looks of an inverse waffle iron. The nanites also improved our primary weapons too. As soon as we equalized our SIVA Engines to 730 volts per Engine, the nanites furnished the looks of the Pulse Rifle frames, making them fully functional as Outbreak Primes.

Shiro called again, "WHERE ARE YOU!? WE'RE WAITING AT THE TWILIGHT GAP!"

"Sorry, Shiro," I said, "We had to face the mind behind SIVA, but-"

"THERE'S NO TIME! WE NEED YOU HERE ASAP!"


	71. The Return of Democracy

THE RETURN OF DEMOCRACY

 _One shall die by the hand of a Warlord, and he shall rise after death as a Warlock  
One shall be tempered by the Hand of Magic, and he shall master the elements  
One shall be tainted by his monsters, and he shall destroy a Darkness  
One shall run from fear, then she will stand with it  
One shall be struck by an old enemy, then she will strike back, and all will bow to her  
One shall rise to a challenge, but in the end, he shall become it_

-The Fate of the Six

* * *

We landed in Twilight Gap, just outside the old City watchtower. Shiro ran to us when we touched the ground, "Iron Lords! You've arrived just in time! Efrideet, Cayde, and I are inside with the other Guardians!"

As the scout led us inside, I asked, "How's everyone holding up?"

"Ready for action, Lord Max!"

"And Lord Saladin?" asked Lady Shin.

Shiro shook his head, "He never made it," then he raised his pitch, "We're doing this in Lord Saladin's honor: a retaking of the City!"

"Sounds bold," remarked Lady Mala.

"It is," replied Shiro, "But we have no other choice. With the Iron Temple gone, we have no other base of operations. Even if we were to establish one on Mt. Cadillac, the Concordat would be right there with 30 missiles aimed at our door. Besides, the Concordat is weak without their link to SIVA, you saw to that. Now, we must press the advantage!"

We nodded and grinned to each other, then I said, "At last! A chance to eliminate Fascism once and for all!" As we walked toward the back of the building, we spotted many Guardians operating the old control panels and consoles, all of which powered the radio tower on the roof. When we arrived at the back of the room, Cayde and Efrideet were already typing a command into the console to plug in a microphone. "Iron Lords!" saluted Cayde, "We've finished our work on the radio tower and we're broadcasting a strong pirated signal into the City!"

Efrideet handed the microphone to us and said, "Tell the people about the Concordat and their lies, Max! Tell them to evacuate the City!"

Shiro added, "West gate for the those who stood against the Concordat, silently or out loud; South gate for the hypnotized who were broken free from its iron fist; and East gate for the reformed." He turned to everyone else and said, "We're on the air in 5...4...3...2!"

* * *

The citizens sat in their homes, fearful of what 'Speaker Hideo' might do next. Then, the usual propaganda that they listened to was cut off from every megaphone in the City and replaced by my voice. "Attention all citizens of The Last Safe City on Earth: This is Max Prodigy speaking. I know that you've heard a lot of things about me, but it's time that you learned the truth," I paused, collected my thoughts, then said, "The City is being overrun by the Concordat, a military faction dedicated to wiping out the Consensus and replacing it with a dictatorship. Erik Larson, aka Lysander, has done so during the elections, by putting Zavala and Hideo in charge of distributing propaganda and Alternative Facts throughout the City's megaphones, while cutting your basic rights like education and healthcare. His goal is to enslave all of you, the working middle-class and the Guardians, into his unyielding grip, forcing all of you to work 24/7 until you die of exhaustion. And if he couldn't enslave you using speech, then he would do it using SIVA, even to the point where he would reanimate your dead family members and gut the Earth just to build up his Fifth Reich."

Some of the citizens gasped, "We elected Zavala for this!? But he promised us protection!"

The other citizens said, "Military protection and strengthening walls are close relatives to enslavement and concentration camps! Did you not read history!?"

I continued with, "I offer you a way out: For those of you who protested against the Concordat, internally or externally, for those who were once hypnotized, but can now see clearly, for those who voted for Zavala or stood with the Concordat before, but now reject them, go to the nearest City exit and bypass all checkpoints if necessary. And for the rest of you who are staying with the Concordat, you need to decide if you're willing to side with an oppressive tyrant or a knowledgeable Warlock. Think wisely."

Everyone scrambled to grab their stuff and head for the exits. Erik stood in the Tower and summoned all of his Concordat Guardians to the Plaza, about a quarter of which went missing. "TODAY!" he announced from the balcony overlooking the plaza, "MAX PRODIGY HAS THREATENED OUR EXISTENCE AND OUR FUTURE WITH HIS BABBLING! YOUR JOB IS TO SPREAD THE SIVA SWARM ACROSS THE CITIZENS!"

A Hunter asked, "AND WHAT IF WE DON'T WANT TO?"

Erik pulled out a pistol and killed the Hunter from the balcony, "ANY OTHER QUESTIONS?" The crowd shook their heads. "THEN WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!? GO!"

* * *

Cayde unplugged the microphone and turned to us, "No turning back, guys! Let's liberate the City!"

"Not before you have an ounce of prevention!" Tyra arrived with the vaccines just in time, "These came out of the centrifuges this morning!"

"Thanks, Tyra!" I said as I took the vials.

"No problem! But it only works on Human and Awoken subjects, Exos need to be careful."

"Noted," signed Kaden.

"Understood," said Mala.

Shin, Graham, Anna and I injected ourselves with the vaccine, then proceeded to inoculate every organic Guardian that we had, while instructing the Exo Guardians to be careful when dealing with SIVA. I then asked Tyra, "What about the citizens? What if they're infected?"

She shrugged and said, "Good luck with that."

Mala answered with, "Our Outbreak Primes! They can seek rogue SIVA nanites and recode them!"

"Within a radius of?"

"3 feet, but the recoding is instantaneous."

"And can the others have Outbreak Primes to recode the SIVA mites?"

Just like that, my Outbreak Prime began to split into two different Outbreak Primes. Mala stared at the process in amazement, "I really need to study SIVA more often!"

I gave the new Outbreak to a Guardian for distribution, and then led my Fireteam back to our ships and into the City. 20 of our Guardians stood at the West, South, and East gates, checking each citizen for rogue SIVA mites. We entered through the West gate, loading our Outbreaks and watching each corner and street that we came across, killing Concordat Guardians that came in packs of 3 or 6, or stray Concordat Guardians who aimed for our heads. For every 40 citizens that ran past us, there was always one that was controlled by SIVA, until they got close to us, then their SIVA was recoded and added to our Outbreaks' ammunition. As for the cleansed citizen, they stopped for a while to recover, then kept running past us until they reached a gate.

Once we reached the Tower in the northern part of the City, we began climbing it all the way to the top, killing Concordat Guardians that stood in our way. As we ran out of the doorway into Tower North, we separated into pairs: Anna and Mala would clean out the Hangar, Kaden and Graham secured the Plaza, while Shin and I ran into the Speaker's office to find a SIVA-fused Hideo at the desk, punching buttons and brainlessly saying, "Yes, Mein Fuhrer."

"What is he doing?" asked Shin.

"I don't know! Let's get a closer look!" I answered. Just as we approached him, Hideo's enhancements withdrew from him and were recoded into our Outbreaks. The Executor fell to the ground, bleeding to death. "Oh no!"

"AND THE SAME FATE WILL HAPPEN TO YOU SOON!" shouted a voice from behind.

We turned around and saw Erik standing at the office entrance, guarded by two Titans. "Erik!" I shouted, "Why do want to enslave the City?"

"Me? Enslave?" he laughed, "Mankind is already a slave to its weak, fleshy, corporeal form! I want to liberate them from their blood, from their bones, from their flesh to become immortal inside of metal nanites! It's their final evolution!"

"At the cost of their souls, their emotions, their already free lives!" I protested, "Did you ever think about the people and whether or not they wanted to lose their minds to soulless machinery!?"

"If they did, it would defeat the purpose!"

"Whatever happened to the Erik that I knew, the one that cared for his friends and their goals? Whatever happened to the Erik that would always rise to the challenge?"

Erik cackled, "I never left those attributes behind!"

"You did when you pledged yourself to Drumpf!"

"He promised me that all of us would be saved!"

"And does he live up to his promises?"

"No," growled Erik, "That's why I had to deal with it myself! As a Warlord, I sent Felwinter to scour the Cosmodrome for something to create a utopian society. Then he found it! He found SIVA! I was glad to tell Veronica the news, but then we were ambushed, and Veronica was mortally wounded by the Iron Lords! And guess who provided them with our location? FELWINTER! THAT NO GOOD, SON OF A WARMIND BETRAYED ME! **ME! OUT OF ALL PEOPLE!** I rescued Veronica the only way I knew how: transforming her into an AI to control SIVA! Two birds with one stone! It was perfect! I gave her eternal life as a god, and she would grant everyone the same thing!"

"By negating their lives!"

"An unfortunate side effect, and a cost I was willing to take, even for my friends!" He raised his voice, "I wanted all of us together, forever in one place. I sought immortality for you Max, but you were always too focused on the masses' rights to even give a shit about any of us! I decided that if a Socialist won't listen to me, then a Fascist will! Do you not see the good that comes out of my plans?"

I stepped closer to Erik until we were 2 feet apart, "Nothing good ever comes out of Fascism. Your immortality robs people of their personalities, their souls, their memories, their lives that they want to live! Metallic nanites cannot replicate Human or Awoken lives, nor their memories or personalities! The immortality that you saw in SIVA is a curse!"

"And you think ours is a blessing?"

"It is only a blessing when it is used to help others," said another voice. Erik turned around to find Lady Efrideet standing two feet away from him. She pulled off her helmet to reveal her milk chocolate face, frizzy hair, and coffee eyes.

I gasped, "Isabella?"

Isabella nodded, "I am she, and for the record Erik, you're a lunatic for trying to control everyone's wills! Have you not heard of liberty?"

Erik growled and advanced on Isabella, striking her at least 5 times. I quickly jumped to Efrideet's side, drew Yuulstrang out and put its edge underneath his chin, "Don't even think about it!"

He laughed, "You should know better than to draw a sword at **ME!** " Erik drew his SIVA sword and clashed it with mine. He and I dueled in the Tower North, he kept pushing me down, but I struck at his weakness, causing him to stumble as I ran away to the Plaza. Erik followed and flew at me when I reached the stairs to the old Iron Banner area. I quickly defended myself from the blow using the Void guard, sending both of us reeling backward. The traitor split his sword along the edge and wielded a sword in each hand, then he swung. I guarded myself against his attacks, but they always sent my reeling backward. Efrideet jumped into the fray with her own sword, and together we dueled Erik in the old Iron Banner area in the Tower.

Lysander spun once, knocking us back by 5 feet, then he said, "Isn't it ironic? How the Prophesy of Legend pertains to me?"

We shook our heads, "No, it doesn't!"

Erik cackled and recited each line as he inched closer to us, "Erik shall die by the hand of a Warlord, and he shall rise after death as a Warlock; Erik shall be tempered by the Hand of Magic, and he shall master the elements; Erik shall be tainted by his monsters, and he shall destroy a Darkness; Erik shall run from fear, then he will stand with it; Erik shall be struck by an old enemy, then he will strike back, and all will bow to him; But Max shall rise to a challenge, and in the end, he shall become it!" I widened my eyes as he continued, "Do you not see? I am the chosen one! I am the Warlock of Legend!"

"You're psychotic!" I spat. Erik launched lightning bolts at us

Erik launched lightning bolts at us and cackled like Emperor Palpatine, "You are nothing but specks in the fabric of time! You will die as such!" Isabella and I guarded ourselves with our swords against his electricity, diverting it in different directions. As we advanced, the electrical pressure increased, most of which was directed back to Erik, burning off his face to reveal an Exo's body. "NOW YOU SEE ME AS I TRULY AM!" he said mechanically, "A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF OUR FINAL EVOLUTION!"

Efrideet and I struck as hard as she could against Erik's body, slicing through his armor and his swords, destroying most of his chassis and his arms. "FASCISM IS NOT EVOLUTION, IT'S THE EXACT OPPOSITE! AND TONIGHT IT DIES!"

Erik pressed a button on his belt and shouted, " **GHAUL! BURN THE CITY! BURN IT TO THE GROUND!** "

We struck Erik one last time in the heart and neck, killing him off for good. His Ghost was about to rez him, but we heard three bullets whistle in our ears and saw the Ghost's eye punctured by three SIVA bullets. The Ghost dropped to the floor, stone cold. We turned around and saw Shin aiming down the sights of her Outbreak Prime. "What?" she asked, "Were you going to leave me out of the fun?"

Mala and the others returned from the Hangar, "Tower and City are secure, Ouros is inbound," then she raised her hands in the air like Rocky Balboa, "We've won! We won back the City!"

Isabella did the same pose and jumped in the air, "FREE AT LAST! FREE AT LAST! LORD TRAVELER, ALMIGHTY, WE ARE FREE AT LAST!" Shin popped off our helmets again, scooped me up bridal style, and kissed me. Anna proceeded to do the same to our cheeks (which we didn't reciprocate out of courtesy), and Kaden and Graham copied Shin and me. From the Tower, we could see the citizens rush through the gates again, this time going back to their homes with victory in their hearts. I breathed a sigh of relief as I sat in Shin's arms, _Today, Tomorrow, and every day from now on shall be known as The Age of Triumph!_

* * *

Dominus Ghaul sat in his command ship, waiting for the signal. He expected Erik to fail in his conquest of the City and the Traveler. _How much longer must it take? He can't be that stubborn._ Then the signal came through, _"GHAUL! BURN THE CITY! BURN IT TO THE GROUND!"_ The Emperor grinned, _About time!_ He turned on the comms channels to all Cabal soldiers on the Cabal Homeplanet, "ATTENTION! THIS IS YOUR EMPEROR SPEAKING! BEFORE, WE USED TO BE DIVIDED INTO SEPARATE LEGIONS FOR DIFFERENT TASKS! NOT ANYMORE! TODAY, ALL LEGIONS WILL BECOME ONE RED LEGION ENTIRELY! OUR FIRST MISSION AS THE RED LEGION IS TO INVADE EARTH, AVENGE OUR BROTHERS AND SISTERS BY WRECKING THE GUARDIANS' PRECIOUS CITY, AND STEAL THEIR TRAVELER'S LIGHT! YOU ARE TO REPORT TO DUTY IMMEDIATELY! WE LEAVE IN ONE HOUR!" _Now, Max Prodigy, let's see what happens when you're powerless!_


	72. Epilogue

EPILOGUE

 _3 months later_

I stood in the Plaza, overlooking the city with Shin on a warm summer's night. Her belly began to bulge, though not severely, not yet. We wore t-shirts and shorts from the local shirt shop in the City. Speaker Ouros raised the minimum wage from 1000 Glimmer per hour to 1700 GPH, eliminated a wage gap that was biased against anyone who wasn't a straight white human male, increased taxes on the rich, and has set up a single-payer system for healthcare. In the City, Ouros's policies were known as the Awesome Society. To Shin and myself, this was the life.

The Exo Stranger appeared to the other side of me, "Beautiful view, isn't it?"

I looked over at her and said, "It is. Though, I doubt that's why you're here."

She nodded, "A prophecy has been completed, but a vision from the Vault of Glass has been avoided: the Weapons of Sorrow."

I nodded, "It was easy, avoiding a future."

"But that strand of time was close to this one. Heck, it's the one timeline that the Vex hoped for!"

"So?"

"So, you've enraged Xylar! Destroying a timeline that someone crafted so brilliantly leaves consequences!"

I laughed, "Who cares? We can take them!"

"No, you can't."

"Why not?"

"I don't know. The picture is hazy, but it's coming soon," she paused, then said to Shin, "Don't tell anyone except for Hawthorne about that."

"Wait," said Shin, "Why?"

The Stranger took my No Time to Explain, strapped it to her back, and said, "I don't have time to explain why I don't have time to explain," then she disappeared again.

I pulled out Jared and asked, "Is the Fate of Six complete?"

He answered, "Yes."

"Can you recite it?" asked Shin.

" _Jared shall die by the hand of a Warlord, and he shall rise after death as a Warlock  
_ _Max shall be tempered by the Hand of Magic, and he shall master the elements  
_ _Mark shall be tainted by his monsters, and he shall destroy a Darkness  
_ _Veronica shall run from fear, then she will stand with it  
_ _Isabella shall be struck by an old enemy, then she will strike back, and all of the Iron Lords will bow to her  
_ _Erik shall rise to a challenge, but in the end, he shall become it._ "

"So," she said, "It wasn't referring to us after all."

I chuckled, "I guess that's the point about being a Guardian, you're not bound by Fate or Destiny, you make it."

Shin smiled, "Yeah, that's true."

"So," I said, "Date night?"

"I thought you'd never ask."

* * *

Savathun floated in her sister's Throne World and read from a scroll of enchantments, selecting the right one for the job. She placed a bunch of Runes in a huge circle and spoke in an ancient tongue, bringing forth the body and the head of Xivu Arath into the circle. "Body of the recipient, bones of the brother, ashes of the lesser, and blood of the sister!" She chanted these words again and again, bringing forth the ingredients to the circle, before casting an Antiquated Rune onto Xivu Arath's Heart. The circle erupted into a black exploding pillar of necromancy. When the spell was done, Xivu Arath cracked her neck and said, "We have work to do."

The sisters brought up a picture of the destroyed Dreadnaught and began to infuse its parts with magic, bringing the Dreadnaught back together without a power source. "Now," said Savathun, "Let's make them fear for their lives, and avenge our brother!"

* * *

Variks approached the Kell of House Kings, "Bow to Judgement, or die divided."

The Kell laughed, "Do you have idea who you mess with?"

Variks was unwavering in his statement, even as he was mocked, punished, and scolded.

The Kell got off of his throne and whipped Variks many times, even when the Judgement Scribe explained, "All banners torn, huge whirlwind coming, you saw it?"

The Kell didn't answer, but Variks continued to ask. The Kell gave up and said, "Yes, all saw it, it's inevitable, Great Machine can't prevent it, we cower before its might, run before the Night draws near."

"Or you can unite." The Kell looked at Variks, then began to weep, "It's ok to admit, we the only ones who know."

"Then what do we do?"

"Follow my orders, send your Eliksni to stars once more. House Judgement must stand tall!"

* * *

Rasputin stood inside the Perfection Complex and walked up to the platform where Veronica once stood. He lifted himself up to the hole, placed his hand inside, and called upon SIVA. A red cloud appeared behind him, "Yes, Master?"

The Warmind barely turned his head, "Has Malahayahti demanded control?"

"Yes, your daughter has."

"Did you give her control?"

"I made it look that way."

Rasputin grinned, "Good. I have a new task for you..."

* * *

Xylar stood before Melkor and bowed, "Sir, the second seal is broken!"

Melkor laughed, "Excellent! Erik has played his part well, and so will Ghaul! The Nine Seals will be broken, and I shall be free once again!" He corrected his posture and said, "There is a new prophecy being made! The Prophecy of the Hybrid! Do you know it, Xylar?"

"I haven't seen anything in the timestreams yet, but I will check them when I go to Nessus," answered the Vex Overlord.

"Go, alter the timelines if you need to."

"At once, my lord."

The Dark Lord stood straight, laughing to himself, _Soon, I shall be free!_

* * *

Kaden and Anna were busy knitting scarves and sweaters with Eva Levante. Anna, as the new Titan Vanguard, made it her duty to teach her Titans not just to battle, but to knit as well. To do this, they took lessons from Eva every Wednesday at night. Soon enough, the three of them started knitting sessions on Wednesdays to give anyone the pleasure of patience and time when knitting. It started with only a few Titans, but it even reached the minds of Hunters and Warlocks as well.

Graham also had his way of pleasure, setting up a Casino Night every Saturday in the Tower Iron Banner area for the Hunters. At first, it was good with loaded dice and a knife at each other's throat in a friendly manner, but when the Titans and Warlocks got involved, he swapped out every loaded die with a regular one, just to avoid nasty confrontations.

Malahayahti juggled reading time with the Warlocks and weaponsmithing time with Banshee with her own free time, learning how to cook. She began by learning from Ikora Rey and Arach Jalaal, the Dead Orbit representative. Then, she taught both Shin and me, and we soon delivered home-baked sweets to the knitting sessions and casino nights. Mala would also distribute our baked goods to restaurants across the City, and we were happy to give back to the community.

One night after sending a bunch of Whoopie Pies and cupcakes to Graham's Casino, Shin and I sat in our room, watching Doctor Who on Amazon Prime. To my surprise, Amazon and Netflix were able to thrive for 700+ years in our Solar System. She held her left arm around me for a while, my head resting on her shoulder. She asked, "Did you see anything?"

I nodded, "Yeah."

"What did you see?"

I paused, looking for the right terms, "A vision of our future, Our Light was stolen from us, The Darkness is rising in numbers, and a Hybrid hanging in the balance."

Shin rubbed her belly, feeling her uterus and a heartbeat inside, "Our Hybrid?"

"Most likely."

Shin gave it some thought and said, "If I wanted to, I could get an abortion?"

I nodded, "Yes, and I will support whatever decision you make."

"Good, because I don't want one. If our Hybrid can be swayed to the Dark Side, then she could be taught to love and carry out justice in the name of the Light."

Then a thought occurred to me, and I asked her, "But how did we...create the Hybrid? We're both zombies! Dead things resurrected by a dead power, how can we create something that is could be living when it comes out of the womb?"

Shin stared blankly into my eyes then back at the screen, "I don't know! Do you think that the Traveler could..." then brushed it aside, "Nah! It's dormant! It has to be us and our reproductive systems, there is no other way!"

I nodded, "Ok, I'll ask Ikora if I can spend extra time in the Warlock libraries."

Shin nodded, "Sounds good! And thank you!"

"For what?"

"Introducing me to Doctor Who," she giggled.

I smiled and my head on her shoulder again, "You're welcome!"

* * *

Dominus Ghaul stood on the bridge of his ship, his Red Legion close behind. A Psion named Rehla came up to him and said, "Just a few more months to go, sir."

Ghaul rubbed his hands together, preparing for the biggest kill of anyone's lifetime. "Thank you, mother! Are the Gladiators ready? Have the Warbeasts been fed?"

"Yes, and so are the Incinerators! As for the Warbeasts, they're hungry for a meal and acting up for it."

Ghaul nodded, "Feed them until we are a month away from Earth. I want them hungry and spry enough to taste fresh meat from the City!"

"As you wish, Your Highness."

Ghaul grinned as he looked at the soldiers below him, training for combat with their new weapons and shields, then took a quick look through the roof, keeping watch over The Trapper, a hyperspace-capable needle that extends itself when a celestial body is near, trapping it with a laser field as it mined and gutted a planet or moon for raw minerals and materials for their ships, weapons, armor, or wealth. Ghaul also witnessed what happened after a planet was gutted to the core: The Trapper would then close itself rapidly with the laser field still active, crushing the planet or moon into bits and pieces of slag, floating lifelessly in the vacuum of space. _The Traveler's Light shall be mine with this thing! All of the secrets of Time and Space in the palm of my hand!_


End file.
